


Coming Home

by inkinmyheartandonthepage



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers Family, Completed, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Feels, Flash Thompson Redemption, Freeform, Gen, Identity Reveal, Kidnapped Peter Parker, Not Canon Compliant, Not Spider-Man: Homecoming Compliant, Parent Pepper Potts, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker is Pepper Potts's Biological Child, Peter Parker is Tony Stark's Biological Child, Peter is a Little Shit, Precious Peter Parker, Protective Tony Stark, Protectiveness, Secret Identity, Sensory Overload, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Vomiting, civil war never happened
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-22
Updated: 2020-06-09
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:34:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 59,966
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24318127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/inkinmyheartandonthepage/pseuds/inkinmyheartandonthepage
Summary: AU – Peter Stark was kidnapped when he was just three years old. Tony and Pepper never stopped looking for their boy. Years later, Peter finds his way back home.
Relationships: May Parker (Spider-Man) & Peter Parker & Tony Stark, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Pepper Potts, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 731
Kudos: 2234
Collections: Avidreaders Avengers completed faves, Avidreaders Spiderman completed faves, Stories in which Peter Stark was kidnapped as a child., The Best Irondad/Spiderson Fics, The Best Peter Parker Whump Fics, The Best of the Best MCU Fics, love of marvel, peter finds his way home





	1. Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! 
> 
> Welcome to my newest story! I thought I would try my hand of Tony being Peter's biological parent and came up with this story! 
> 
> Firstly I would like to say that I have no idea how kidnapping cases actually work so this is a complete work of fiction and made up by my imagination. I also have no idea how the FBI works so that is also fiction. 
> 
> Secondly this is set before Homcoming and loosely follows Iron Man and The Avengers time line. I have taken some liberties so please keep that in mind. 
> 
> I will update the tags as I go along as at the moment I can't think of them all. 
> 
> Apologies for any mistakes and I hope you all enjoy :)

**Part One**

Tony Stark smiled as he felt warm arms slip around his neck, petite hands settling over his heart and arc-reactor.

“What are you looking at?” Pepper hummed in his ear.

“Just viewing the latest YouTube clip of the Spiderling vigilante,” Tony said, eyes never leaving the Stark Tablet in his hands.

“What has he done this time?” Pepper asked.

“On today’s vigilante swing,” Tony tapped at the screen, pressing play on the video. “He rescued a stray dog about to be hit by a car.”

Pepper watched as the blue and red figure swung down in the front of a car, the horn blaring loudly, and scooped the dog up with his free arm, just before the car came speeding past. The one they were calling Spider-Man landed lightly on the sidewalk, putting the dog down safely. She watched as the blue and red vigilante patted the dogs head before he was shooting a web at the nearest building and swinging away.

“Amazing,” Pepper said softly.

“That tensile strength of that webbing is off the charts,” Tony shook his head lightly. “I wonder if they’re the manufacturer of it or if they’re getting it from somewhere else.”

Pepper placed a kiss on her husband’s cheek. “You could ask him.”

“I’m going to have to,” Tony sighed.

“What do you mean?” Pepper asked.

“Fury wants to know who this guy is,” Tony said. “He’s starting to make a big name for himself and you know Fury, he likes to know everything about everyone. Especially when they are enhanced like the Spiderling appears to be.”

“He saved a dog from being hit by a car,” Pepper pointed out. “I don’t think he’s dangerous.”

“Fury thinks he could be Avenger material,” Tony switched the tablet to sleep mode and settled back into his wife’s embrace. “I disagree solely on the onesie he’s wearing.”

Pepper chuckled. The suit the vigilante was clearly a handmade costume. Whoever the vigilante was, they were obviously on a budget.

“Boss, the FBI are calling,” FRIDAY’s voice filtered through the workshop.

Pepper frowned, pulling back from Tony’s shoulder’s, allowing her husband to spin around on her stool. She raised a brow at his confused expression. “What did you do now?”

Tony scoffed. “ _I_ didn’t do anything. How do I know they’re not calling about you?”

Pepper smirked. “Because _I_ would never get caught.”

Tony mirrored her smirk, sneaking an arm around her waist. “Patch them through FRIDAY.”

“Mr Stark. This is Agent Williamson from the FBI.”

Both Pepper and Tony froze as the man introduced himself. The name was one they knew well but had not been one they were expecting to hear from for another few months.

“What can I do for you, Agent Williamson?” Tony asked, arms tightening around his wife’s waist, his voice steadily controlled.

“Mr Stark, my apologies for calling so early,” Agent Williamson said.

“It’s fine,” Tony said. “What can I do for you?”

“My office was alerted when a fingerprint was run through our system yesterday,” Agent Williamson said, always getting straight to the point. “Mr. Stark, the fingerprint was a match to your sons, Peter Stark.”

Pepper’s hands flew to her mouth, Tony’s tight grip on her waist the only thing keeping her upright. She locked eyes with her husband, watching as the blood drained from his face and his lips became a thin line.

Eleven years ago, while Tony had been kidnapped and trapped in a cave by a group of terrorists for three months, Pepper had been left alone with their three-year-old son Peter. To her horror and devastation, Peter had been taken in the dead of the night. While Rhodey searched for her husband, Pepper and Happy had worked with the FBI to find their son.

Tony had been returned to her, harmed, injured but _alive_ but they had never found Peter. As it came to light that it had been Obadiah who had been the one to orchestrate Tony’s kidnapping and Peter’s, the man had never given up their son’s location before he died. They had poured over Stane’s files, but the man hadn’t left a trace. That had not stopped Pepper and Tony from using all their available resources into finding their son, including SHEILD but they had never uncovered where he was. 

“Are you positive?” Tony managed to choke out.

“We brought in the boy for some questioning last night and to run a blood sample against the one you provided us,” Agent Williamson said. “Are you available to come to the FBI?”

“We’ll be there in ten,” Tony said before he had FRIDAY end the call.

“Peter,” Pepper whispered, tears spilling down her cheeks. “ _Tony_.”

Tony buried his face in Pepper’s stomach, clutching her tightly. He took a few steadying breaths, trying to get his thoughts in order but he couldn’t get past the constant stream that _they had found his son_. Pepper’s fingers found their way into his hair, gently brushing through the strands. He shuddered, pulling back and swallowing hard. He stood, gently cupping his wife’s face and wiped away her tears. He kissed her forehead before pulling back.

“You get the picture of Peter and I’ll get Happy to meet us out the front,” Tony said.

Pepper nodded, almost frantically, before she spun on her heels and left the room.

Tony swayed as she left, his heart clenching painfully. He took a few uneven breaths before he ran a hand down his face. “FRIDAY, call Happy and get his ass out the front.”

* * *

Peter Parker’s legs bounced as he took in the small waiting room. He sat in one of the comfy chairs that was provided, leg bouncing as he waited. There was a tall plastic smelling plant in the room and a painting hung on the wall. A table sat across one of the walls, refreshments available if he wished for one.

He didn’t, his stomach twisting with nerves.

He and May had been on their way home after eating at their favourite Thai restaurant when they had been stopped at the front of their apartment. _By the FBI_. They had offered no explanation other than they needed to come down to the FBI to sought something out and if they didn’t cooperate, they would be arrested.

Peter’s first thought was that they had found out about his alter-ego, Spider-Man. On the car ride there May had tried to get them to answer why they were being detained but they had not said a word. When they arrived, Peter and May had been separated and he hadn’t seen his Aunt since.

The door opened to the waiting room and Peter straightened, eyeing the sharply dressed man who entered.

“Peter? I’m Agent Williamson,” the man introduced himself with an easy smile. “My apologies for keeping you waiting.” He crossed the room, taking a seat near Peter.

“I’m Peter Parker,” Peter introduced and then winced. The FBI most likely knew who he was since they had been waiting for him and May. “Where’s my Aunt?”

“Your Aunt is answering a few questions for us,” Williamson said. 

“What kind of questions?” Peter swallowed.

“May Parker is helping us clear up a few things for us,” Williamson smiled. “You aren’t in any trouble, Peter.”

“Oh,” Peter blinked. “Okay. That’s good. I mean – I hadn’t done anything to warrant being in trouble.”

“I know you haven’t,” Williamson said. “Peter, are you up to answering a few questions for me?”

“Um, yes, I guess so,” Peter shrugged. “What do you need to know?”

“Great,” Williamson smiled. He leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees and his hands clasped together. “How long have you been living with May Parker?”

Peter blinked, brows contracting together. “My aunt? Ummm, since I was six or seven. She and my Uncle Ben took me in when my mum and dad died.”

Williamson nodded. “Your uncle passed away recently, didn’t he?”

Peter looked down at his hands, watching his fingers twist together. “Yeah, about six months ago. He was – um – he was shot by a mugger.”

“You were there?” Williamson asked gently.

Peter nodded; his throat tight. “I – we were coming home. Uncle Ben had taken me out for ice-cream to celebrate an A I got in my chemistry class.” He took a shaky breath, his nose starting to sting. “We were just walking home.”

“I’m sorry for your loss, Peter,” Williamson said.

Peter nodded. “Thank you.” He looked back up at the FBI agent. “Umm – the police took my statement months ago. Why are you asking about Ben?”

Williamson didn’t answer his question. “What do you remember about your parents?”

Peter frowned. He was beginning to think that maybe this had nothing to do with his alter-ego. “My parents?”

“Richard and Mary Parker,” Agent Williamson prompted. “What do you remember about them?”

“I know they were scientists,” Peter said slowly. “I don’t know what kind though. I remember my dad doing experiments with me. You know, stuff with magnets and dropping Mentos in coke. I – I don’t remember a lot about them.”

“Did Ben and May ever tell you stories about them?” Williamson asked.

“Uncle Ben was my dad’s brother,” Peter said. “He would tell me stories about them growing up. Uncle Ben told me about how my dad met my mum at a convention. They would travel a lot for their work. That’s how they died. They were heading out on a business trip and their plane crashed.”

“And you were staying with May and Ben Parker at the time,” Williamson said.

“Agent Williamson? What is this all about?” Peter asked. “Why are you asking me questions about my parents?”

“Peter,” Williamson's voice was gentle but controlled. “You had a police officer come to your school today, correct? For careers day?”

Peter blinked at the rapid change in conversation. “Yes.”

“And he went through the process of his job,” Williamson continued.

Peter nodded.

“He also went through the process of fingerprinting and how each one is unique. He even let your class participate in fingerprinting,” Williamson said.

“Were you there too?” Peter blurted out, confounded as to how the agent was detailing the officer’s presentation exactly. He didn’t remember seeing the agent there at all.

“No,” Williamson chuckled. “I spoke with that officer earlier today.”

“How come?” Peter asked.

“The officer put your class’s prints through our database to demonstrate how we use prints to find a person's identity,” Williamson explained. “When he did this, we were sent an alert when your prints showed up in our system.”

Peter swallowed. They knew. They knew that he was Spider-Man. Peter was sure that he had always worn his gloves when he was out patrolling but maybe he had slipped up and left his prints at a crime scene. Oh god he was going to be arrested.

“Oh?” Peter squeaked out.

“Peter, what I am about to tell you will be a shock,” Williamson said seriously. “But we are here to help you. Okay?”

Peter couldn’t speak and stared at the agent, willing his heart to stop racing in his chest. They were going to arrest him. They were going to take away his homemade suit and throw him in jail all because he was trying to help.

“Peter, your prints were in our system because we’ve been looking for you since you were a baby,” Williamson said.

Peter opened his mouth to defend that he wasn’t Spider-Man when the Agent’s words kicked in. “Wait – looking for me?”

“Peter, Richard and Mary Parker were not your parents,” Williamson said. “Your last name isn’t Parker.”

* * *

May Parker straightened as the door to the interrogation room was opened. A female agent, dressed in an expensive looking back pant suit stepped into the room, the door clicking behind her. She looked around the same age as May, blonde hair pulled back into a severe looking ponytail. Strictly business.

“Where is Peter?” May demanded.

“Peter is safe,” the agent said, taking a seat on the opposite side of the table. “I’m Agent Harper. I need to ask you some questions about Peter.”

“Is he okay?” May swallowed. “Is he in some kind of trouble?”

“He’s fine and not in any trouble,” Harper said, flipping open a file she had placed on the table. “You are Peter’s current guardian, correct?”

May placed her hands on the table, shifting in her seat. “Yes. My husband and I took in our nephew when he was six. His parents were killed in a plane crash.”

Harper nodded. “You were not related to Richard or Mary Parker, were you?”

“Only by marriage,” May pushed her glasses up her nose. “Ben was Richard’s brother.”

“Ben passed away recently, correct?” Harper asked.

May swallowed around the tight lump in her throat. “Yes. Six months ago. He was killed in a mugging. Peter was there with him.” She inhaled shakily. “The police talked to him about this already. They took his statement.”

“I have the report here,” Harper tapped the file with her pen.

“Then why did you ask me about it?” May snapped. She took another shaky breath. “What is this all about?”

“You continued to care for Peter, even after your husband’s death?” Harper asked, ignoring May’s outburst.

“Of course,” May huffed. “Peter’s family. _My_ family. I would never abandon him.”

“Were you there for the birth of Peter?” Harper asked.

May blinked at the left fielded question. “What?”

“Were you present when Mary Parker gave birth to Peter?” Harper repeated.

“I – no. No, neither Ben nor I were there,” May hesitated.

Harper nodded, making a note. “When did you first meet, Peter?”

Something churned uncomfortably in May’s stomach. “Three. Peter was three years old when Richard and Mary first introduced us to him.”

“Why so old?” Harper asked, cocking her head to the side. “Your first and only nephew and you only met him when he was three?”

“Mary and Richard weren’t living in Queens,” May argued. “They were away on business. Ben and I didn’t hear from them much – a phone call once a month was the most contact Ben had.”

“How well did you know the Parker’s?” Harper asked.

“Not very well,” May admitted. “They were always travelling for business and after Ben and I got married they had accepted a job across the country. They came back after three years and that’s when we learnt of Peter.”

“You didn’t question why they hadn’t told you about their first-born child?” Harper asked.

“Well, it was a little weird,” May agreed. “But Ben and Richard weren’t super close. Ben felt he could never live up to Richard’s expectations. He was a scientist and Ben wasn’t. Once we met Peter, we got swept up in him. He was adorable. Still is.”

“Did you often spend time with Peter before his parents were killed?” Harper made another note.

“We would babysit Peter when Mary and Richard were travelling for business,” May said. “Ben hoped it would bring him and Richard closer together and we adored Peter, so it was no trouble to us.”

“How long would he stay with you?” Harper asked.

“A week at a time, sometimes a little longer,” May bit her bottom lip. “What is this all about? Where is Peter?”

“When you were looking after Peter, did Mary or Richard Parker ever give you instructions?” Harper asked.

“Instructions?” May repeated blandly. “Like don’t let him eat the Lego pieces?”

Harper cracked a small smile. “No. Like if he was injured, don’t take him to the hospital? Did they ever tell you not to take him to certain places?”

“Not to me, no,” May shook her head. 

“Did they give Ben these instructions?” Harper asked.

May sucked in a breath. “I – I don’t know.”

Harper caught the stutter and her mouth tightened. “But Ben knew something?”

“Peter has asthma,” May swallowed, her voice shaky. “Ben always picked up his inhaler from the same place.”

“Where?” Harper demanded.

“Some chemist. I’m – I’m not sure. He always picked up a script before Peter ran out. Since – since Ben died, we haven’t needed to get one,” May rubbed her chest with a frown. “I’m not sure where Ben got the script from.”

Harper scribbled notes quickly. “You never adopted Peter when Mary and Richard passed?”

May shook her head. “We didn’t need to. In their will they named us Peter’s guardian’s.” She stared at the agent across the table from her, something twisting sharply in her chest. “You said Peter wasn’t in trouble. Am I in trouble?”

“You tell me,” Harper said, her voice never losing the tightly controlled sharpness of her tone. “Did you ever question Ben about Peter’s parents?”

“I never saw a reason too,” May insisted. “Peter was never hurt when we babysat. He was healthy, clean, had new clothes and toys. He had no learning disabilities. The opposite, actually. He’s incredibly smart, even when he was young. He was a perfectly happy boy and I had no reason to question anything.”

Harper nodded.

“Why are you asking about Mary and Richard?” May asked.

“May, were you aware that Richard and Mary Parker were not Peter’s biological parents?”

May stared at Agent Harper for a beat. “What the fuck?”

“Am I to take that as a no?” Harper quirked her brow upwards.

“What do you mean Peter isn’t biologically their son?” May demanded.

“Mary Parker never gave birth to Peter,” Harper said.

“So, they adopted him?” May asked. “Is that what this is? Is his biological mother asking for him?”

“Peter's parents have been looking for Peter for eleven years,” Harper said coolly. “Peter was not adopted by Mary and Richard, he was kidnapped.”

May sunk back into her seat, staring wide-eyed at the agent opposite her. She turned over the words in her mind, but she simply couldn’t grasp them long enough to understand.

“May, did you have any idea that Peter wasn’t Richard and Mary’s Parker’s son?” Harper asked.

“No,” May breathed out, blinking dumbly. “They – they _kidnapped_ Peter?”

“We were alerted when Peter’s fingerprints were processed earlier today,” Harper said. “The FBI and his parents have been searching for him since he was taken eleven years ago.”

May covered her mouth with a shaky hand. “Oh my god.”

“Have you ever met a man named Obadiah Stane?” Harper asked.

May shook her head. “No, never. I’ve never heard of him.”

“May, did Ben know about Peter?” Harper asked.

Lowering her hand, May opened her mouth several times before any words came out. “I – I don’t know. He never said – never said anything. Oh my god.”

Closing the file, Harper got to her feet. “Let me get you some water.”

May said nothing as the agent left, her mind reeling. Had she and Ben really been raising someone else’s child? All these years and May had unknowingly kept a mother and father from their child. Had Ben known? Before Richard and Mary – _those strangers_ – told Ben the truth before they died? Or had her husband uncovered the truth and kept it to himself?

Harper returned and May shakily accepted the glass of water, taking a few sips.

“Where is Peter?” May asked.

“He’s being informed of the situation as we speak,” Harper said.

“You’re telling him _alone_?” May cried. “How could you do that to him? Where is he? I want to see him.”

“You will shortly,” Harper said. “I just have a few more questions.”

* * *

Peter stared at Agent Williamson; not sure he had heard the man correctly, even with his super hearing. “What?”

“Richard and Mary Parker were not your biological parents,” Williamson explained.

“Oh,” Peter blinked.

When people asked Peter if he missed his parents, he said he did. It was true, but also not true. Peter didn’t remember much of his parents as he had been so young when they had passed away and he remembered they often left on trips. He remembered often staying with Ben and May and never feeling unhappy or scared. He did miss his parents, but mostly he missed the idea of what him and his parents could have been. But May and Ben had raised him, had given him a loving home and he couldn’t have been happier.

“I was adopted?” Peter frowned.

“Unfortunately, not,” Williamson said. “You were kidnapped from your family.”

Peter froze, limbs locking in his seat. “I don’t feel kidnapped. May didn’t – she wouldn’t _kidnap_ me. I’m not even related to her and took me in.” _You’re not related to any of them_. “She kept me after Ben died. She didn’t have to.”

“Take a breath, Peter,” Williamson coached. “I know this is a lot to take in.”

“A lot to take in?” Peter repeated. “You’re telling me that I was _kidnapped_! That the people that raised me, gave me a home, weren’t my family at all!” He sunk back in his seat, crossing his arms and shoved his hands under his armpits. “I want to see May.”

“You will, soon,” Williamson said. “We just need to ask her some questions.”

“She didn’t kidnap me,” Peter nose stung with tears. “She wouldn’t do that. They never wanted kids.”

“Who?” Williamson asked.

“May and Ben,” Peter sniffed. “I asked them why I didn’t have a brother or sister once. They said that I was all they needed. They were never planning on having kids. But they took me in when my par- when _they_ died.”

“Okay,” Williamson said. “Maybe they didn’t know.”

“May wouldn’t do that,” Peter said stubbornly. “She wouldn’t.”

“That’s what we need to get to the bottom of,” Williamson said gently.

Peter slumped in his chair as he watched the agent get to his feet. 

“I’ll be back in a moment,” Williamson said. “Can I get you any water?” 

Peter shook his head and watched as the agent left the room, leaving Peter all alone with nothing but a tight feeling in his chest and wishing that this had all been about Spider-Man. 


	2. Part 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much everyone for the wonderful support you have given this story! I cannot thank you enough for all the love you have given the first part and I hope that you enjoy Part 2 just as much. 
> 
> I apologize for any mistakes and I hope you all enjoy.

Tony tried desperately not to have a panic attack in the back seat of the car as Happy drove them to the FBI. It was hard to find a steady breathing pattern when Pepper looked as if she was on the verge of an attack herself. He swallowed down the tightness in his chest and mentally ran through his techniques to calm himself down.

After eleven years they had finally found their son. 

Losing Peter had nearly broken them. Tony threw himself into turning Stark Industries around, no longer creating weapons and he threw himself into becoming Iron Man. He nearly lost Pepper in the process, the strain it put on their marriage nearly tearing them apart and for a while it did. As the Avengers were formed, Tony fought hard to get Pepper back; he couldn’t lose the two biggest loves of his life. Their marriage had gotten back on track and they were now stronger than ever. The only thing that was missing was their son. And now he was back. 

He reached across the seat, taking Pepper’s shaking hand in his.

Pepper looked to him, eyes still wet and her face pale. Her breathing was shaky, her whole body trembling. She squeezed Tony’s hand tightly, giving him a weak smile.

“Almost there,” Happy said quietly from the front seat.

Pepper inhaled shakily and Tony was sure that he was about to have a heart attack.

Neither spoke as Happy pulled up to the FBI. They climbed out of the car, immediately putting on a blank face in case any press was lingering around. Neither Tony nor Pepper had wanted Peter growing up under the camera flashes of the paparazzi and had strived to keep him away from it all. Of course, it didn’t stop the world from knowing that they had a child or that he had gone missing.

As soon as they entered the building, Happy right behind them, Agent Williamson was there to greet them.

“Mr and Mrs Stark. Thank you for coming,” Williamson nodded. “I know you must be anxious, so follow me.”

Agent Williamson had been the fourth agent assigned to their case and Tony liked him the best. He hated the first agent on principle. He never believed that they were doing enough to find Peter. Agents number two and three had been any better. Agent Williamson didn’t pander to him or Pepper, never giving them any false hope. He had said he would do what he could, but they had to come to terms that they may never find their son. 

On the darkest days they often wondered if their son was dead. If Obadiah had done the unimaginable and killed their child but neither Happy nor Rhodey had let either of them think that for long.

Williamson led them through the FBI, taking them to a conference room. When they entered, the glass walls went white for privacy as Williamson shut the door. 

“Agent Williamson, please. Is it our son?” Pepper asked, forgoing any pleasantries.

“We ran a blood sample against yours and Tony’s,” William gestured for them to take a seat. When they all seated, he allowed a small smile to lift his lips. “We got the results earlier this morning. It was a match. We have found your son.”

Tony felt his heart stop for a beat, before Pepper was bursting into tears, tucking herself into his neck. He exhaled shakily, wrapping her arms around her as he felt hot tears of relief roll down his neck. He closed his eyes, dropped a kiss into his wife’s hair. He felt Happy’s heavy hand squeeze his shoulder tightly and he finally felt his heart starting to beat again. They stayed like that as they attempted to compose themselves, gathering their thoughts before Pepper pulled herself together, wiping her eyes.

“Is he okay?” Pepper asked, the tears still evident in her voice.

“Physically, Peter’s fine,” Williamson assured them.

“Where has he been?” Tony asked, feeling as though the breath was knocked out of him.

“He’s been living in Queens,” Williamson said.

“Queens,” Pepper gasped. She stared at Tony. He had been so close to them this whole time and neither of them had known.

Tony squeezed his wife's hand before turning back to Agent Williamson. “Who has been living with?”

“A woman named May Parker,” Williamson said.

Tony searched his memory for any reference to the name Parker, but he came up with nothing. “Who is she? How did she get Peter?”

“May Parker is a nurse,” Williamson explained. “Peter has been living with her since he was six years old.”

“Six?” Pepper repeated. “He was taken when he was three. Where was he during those years?”

Williamson nodded. “This is where it gets complicated.”

“Complicated how?” Tony frowned, a hard edge seeping into his tone.

“We are still trying to uncover all the details as to how Peter was kidnapped from your Malibu home,” Williamson said. “What we do know is that Peter was taken in by Richard and Mary Parker.”

Pepper shook her head. “I don’t understand. Who are they?”

“Richard and Mary Parker were scientists, mostly working on genetic engineering,” Williamson said. “Most of their work has been classified or is ‘off the books’.”

Tony gritted his teeth. He knew what ‘off the books’ meant. It was research that wasn’t exactly ethical and was mostly funded by people who had no care for the world in what they created. People like Obadiah.

“Please tell me you have them in custody,” Tony growled.

“There’s no need,” Williamson said. “They died when Peter was six. They were in a plane crash heading out on a business trip.”

“Oh god, please tell me Peter wasn’t with them,” Pepper groaned.

“No, he was staying in the care of who he thought to be his Aunt and Uncle,” Williamson said. “Ben Parker was the brother of Richard. They often babysat Peter when Richard and Mary were on business trips. They took full custody of Peter when they passed.”

Tony swallowed hard, willing his hand to stop shaking. “Have they been good to him?”

“They have provided Peter with everything he has needed,” Williamson assured them. “They live in an apartment building in Queens. A somewhat rough neighbourhood but relatively safe. Peter goes to a great school; Midtown School of Science and Technology. Peter earned a full scholarship to attend.”

Pepper let out a wet laugh. “Of course, he’s brilliant. Just like his dad.”

“Of course, he is,” Tony quipped breathlessly. He let out a strangled sounding noise and Happy squeezed his shoulder again tightly. “Wait – you said he was living with May, yet you mentioned a man, Ben?”

“Ben Parker was shot and killed in a mugging incident six months ago,” Williamson said gravely. “Peter was there and witnessed the whole thing.”

“No,” Pepper whispered, horrified.

Tony breathed sharply through his nose. How much did his kid have to take? “Was he hurt?”

“No,” Williamson said. “There wasn’t a scratch on him.”

Tony nodded, relieved, but his hand still twitched sporadically with a tremor. 

“It is unclear to us if Ben Parker knew that Peter had been kidnapped,” Williamson said. “But we have determined that May Parker had no idea she was raising a kidnapped child.”

“She didn’t know?” Tony growled. “How could she not know?”

“Like I said, it’s complicated,” Williamson said. “After questioning her last night, we believe she had no idea that Peter was a kidnapped child. She’s genuinely horrified about the whole thing. You should know that she insisted that you be contacted immediately.”

“Can we see Peter?” Pepper asked. “I want to see our son.”

“Of course,” Williamson stood to his feet.

“Does he know?” Tony asked.

“He was informed last night,” Williamson said. “He’s taken it rather well considering. He stayed here last night under our care. We deemed May Parker a non-threat and he was adamant that she stayed with him. You should know that she has been helping come to terms with this.”

Pepper nodded, squeezing Tony’s hand. “Thank you.”

“I’ll go get your son. I won’t be long,” Williamson gave them a small smile before he turned and left the room.

Tony sunk into the chair, hand resting over his heart that was beating too hard in his chest. “We found our Peter.”

“We’re getting back our boy,” Pepper smiled tearfully.

* * *

Peter didn’t sleep. Though the FBI had provided him with a pillow, blanket and couch to sleep on, he just couldn’t get his mind to switch off. Eventually, Agent Williamson had stopped asking him questions and instead took some of his blood. After that he left the room only to return with his Aunt May.

_Only, she is not really my Aunt_ , Peter thought.

May had pulled him into a tight hug, kissing the top of his head. She pulled back, keeping her hands on his shoulders and looked him directly in the eye.

“I’m so sorry. Peter, I had no idea and I am so sorry,” May had apologised.

“May,” Peter whimpered. “They said I was kidnapped.”

“Listen to me,” May said, smoothing back his curls. “This is big, and this is scary. I’m scared too, but no matter what happens, I larb you.”

“I larb you too,” Peter sniffed wetly.

“Peter, you know that I would never willingly kidnap a child, right?” May asked.

“What? No, of course you wouldn’t,” Peter cried. “You didn’t kidnap me. You raised me, you’ve done everything for me, even when you didn’t have too.”

“I love you, Peter. You are the best thing that ever happened to me,” May smiled. “But you are also the best thing that happened to your _real_ parents. If I had known Peter, I promise I would have helped you get home to them.”

Peter nodded. “I – I know you would have. I know you would never hurt me.”

May kissed his forehead, pulling him into another hug. “We will get through this.”

At some point May had fallen into a fitful sleep but Peter hadn’t been able to join her. How could he when he had just learnt that he wasn’t really Peter Parker. He ran his hands through his hair before rubbing his eyes tiredly. He tried desperately to remember something of the people who claimed to be his parents. Apart from the occasional experiment, he couldn’t remember that much of them. All his good memories have been with May and Ben.

He sighed, slumping against the pillow. He had never felt unloved by May or Ben. May had never been one to lie to him and he believed her when she said she had no idea. She looked physically sick at the idea that she had been keeping him from his real parents.

Parents. He had parents. They hadn’t told him who they were, and he hadn’t asked, but now he was curious. What were they like? Was his mum a terrible cook like May? Or as strong and fierce as her? Did his dad work with his hands like Ben had? Did he laugh loudly like he had? Would they love him?

“Did you get any sleep?”

May’s voice startled Peter and he sat up. “Oh, um, yeah, a little.”

“Liar,” May snorted, swinging her legs over the edge of the couch. “How are you doing this morning?”

Peter shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“That’s okay,” May said. She smoothed back her hair before leaning over to grab her glasses, sliding them back into place. “Do you have any questions this morning?”

“A million,” Peter admitted.

“Me too,” May sighed. “What is your most pressing question?”

“Will they like me?” Peter asked, his voice small.

“Oh sweetie,” May stood and crossed the room until she was sinking into the couch beside him. “Your parents have been looking for you for eleven years. Of course, they will like you. Besides, you're kind of impossible not to like.”

Peter snorted. “I think some of the kids at school didn’t get that memo.”

May bumped his shoulder with hers. “I want you to give this a chance. I know everything has changed completely in a very short amount of time, but I want you to give this a chance.”

“Okay,” Peter nodded before he leaned down and rested his head on May’s shoulder.

If Peter could get through getting bitten by a radioactive spider and becoming a superhero, he could get through meeting his real parents.

They stayed that way until an Agent came in with a tray of fruit, bagels and coffee. Peter picked at a bagel while May drank the coffee, neither of them particularly wanting it but it was better than going in on an empty stomach. Peter eventually pulled out his phone and saw a few notifications waiting for him. There was a text from Ned (which he would deal with later because right now he wasn’t sure how to put anything into words) and the rest were from Instagram. While Peter scrolled through his feed May stepped off to the side to call the school and said he wouldn’t be in for the rest of the week.

May had just finished up the call when Agent Williamson stepped into the room.

“Good Morning,” he greeted them. “I hope you were comfortable here last night.”

“Thank you,” May said. “And thank you for the breakfast.”

Williamson nodded. “You’re welcome.”

“What happens now?” Peter asked, looking between May and the Agent.

“What happens now is that I am going to take you to a conference room,” Williamson smiled. “and re-introduce you to your parents.”

“They’re here?” Peter swayed on his feet. He felt May’s hand squeeze his shoulder tightly.

Williamson nodded. “And they are very excited to see you.”

“Oh,” Peter blinked. He looked down at his hands, focusing on the steady beat of May’s heart. “They are?”

Williamson chuckled. “Yes, Peter. I’ve been working with your parents for the past five years looking for you. They have never once stopped looking for you.”

Something warm twisted in Peter’s stomach and his breath stuttered out.

“If you are ready, would you like to go meet them?” Williamson asked.

Peter looked at May who squeezed his shoulder and gave him an encouraging smile.

“You can do this, Peter,” May said.

“You’ll be with me?” Peter asked in a small voice.

“Of course, sweetie,” May said. “I would like to apologise them in person, if they’ll let me.”

Taking a deep breath, Peter turned back to Williamson and nodded. “Lead the way.”

“Alright, follow me,” Williamson said, and he led them out of the room and down a well-lit corridor.

Peter was glad for the steady hand that May kept on his shoulder as they followed the agent. Nerves twisted tightly in his stomach and he felt his hands shaking. His eyes darted around, taking everything in sight. He stretched his hearing, trying to catch a glimpse of his parents speaking but he wasn’t sure what they sounded like so all he heard was the office workers around them.

Williamson passed several doors before he came to a stop at a set of whited out glass walls.

“Here we are Peter,” Williamson paused with his hand on the handle of the door. “Are you ready?”

“I guess,” Peter whispered.

“I’ll be right with you,” May assured him.

Licking his lips, Peter nodded. “I’m ready.”

“Here we go,” Williamson smiled, and he pushed open the door.

Peter hesitated as the agent disappeared into the room, not quite able to make his legs move.

“Mr and Mrs. Stark,” Peter heard Williamson say. “This is Peter.”

May squeezed his shoulder once more before giving a firm push towards the door. He held his breath as he passed through, eyes immediately darting to the other end of the room. He came to an abrupt halt, blinking dumbly at his parents. He felt May crash into him at his abrupt stop, but he didn’t budge. 

“Omph, Peter?” May huffed, steadying herself. “Are you – _oh_ ,”

Pepper Stark, formally known as Pepper Potts, current CEO of Stark Industries, was staring at Peter with tear filled eyes and a wobbly smile on her face. She took a few unsteady steps towards him, eyes roaming over his features.

“Peter?” she breathed. “Hi. Hi, I’m –“

“Pepper Stark,” Peter blurted out. The overwhelming nerves of meeting his parents for the first time was superseded by his inner gawking fanboy and he had no control in what was coming out of his mouth. “I – holy crap your _Pepper Stark_! You’re CEO of Stark Industries and are in the top 100 of the most influential women in the country.”

There was snort and Peter’s eyes snapped to the larger man at the back, who he recognised as Happy Hogan, but he was quickly forgotten as Peter locked eyes with Tony Stark. He felt his jaw drop and suddenly his mouth was moving again.

“Tony Stark,” Peter all but whimpered. “You’re Tony Stark.”

“Sure am, kid,” Tony grinned, his eyes looking wet. 

“Oh my god Mr Stark your thesis on nanotechnology and how we can implement it into everyday life such as medical sutures was groundbreaking,” Peter gushed.

Tony blinked at him, looking taken back. “You read that? And understood it?”

Peter nodded, his brain finally catching up to the situation and his cheeks flushed. “Um, yes? I’m sorry.”

Tony shook his head. “Don’t be sorry,” his voice came out hoarse.

There was an awkward silence as nobody seemed quite sure what to do next.

“Why don’t we sit down?” Happy suggested.

“Good idea,” May said.

Steered towards a seat on the opposite side of the table, Peter sat down. He noticed as everyone took their seats that Agent Williamson was hovering by the door, silently watching them all.

“Peter?” Pepper caught his attention. She smiled at him, full of warmth that had Peter relaxing in his chair. “I know this is a lot to take in right now, but you cannot believe how relieved we are to see you. We’ve missed you much.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Peter smiled hesitantly. “I’m sorry for – for not – uh - being there.”

Pepper shook her head roughly while Tony said. “You don’t have anything to be sorry about.”

Peter nodded and turned to look at his Aunt. “This is May. She’s – she’s taken really good care of me.”

May smiled at him before she turned to face his parents. “It’s nice to meet you both and I am so, so sorry. I promise you that I had no idea about Peter. If I did, I would have brought him home sooner.”

“Thank you,” Tony said gruffly.

“She didn’t know,” Peter defended firmly. “May would never do anything like that. She’s been really good to me.”

There was silence before Pepper took a deep breath and nodded at May. “Thank you. For taking care of Peter.”

“It’s been a pleasure,” May smiled at Peter. “You have an amazing son and I am truly and deeply sorry that you’ve missed him for so long.”

Peter shifted in his chair, chewing on his bottom lip.

“Peter?” Pepper asked softly.

“Do you know why?” Peter blurted out, looking between Tony and Pepper.

“Why what?” Tony asked gently, shifting forward in his chair.

He looked different then Peter had seen him on TV. He always looked so effortlessly cool and collected. As Iron Man he seemed untouchable and like steel. But sitting in front of him right now, he looked softer and more emotional than Peter imagined anyone was allowed to see.

“Why was I taken from you?” Peter clarified. 

Pepper and Tony shared a look before Tony cleared his throat.

“That’s my fault.”

“Tony,” Pepper said sharply, fixing him with a glare. “It wasn’t your fault.”

Tony sighed heavily and ran a hand over his face. “How much do you know about me and Iron Man?”

“I think everyone knows your Iron Man,” Peter said honestly. He smiled when he got a small chuckle out of Tony.

“Yeah, didn’t really stick to the cue cards on that one,” Tony winked. “Long story short, Obadiah Stane took you to hurt us.”

The name was briefly familiar and like all kids his age he had grown up with superheroes as the norm, but the name meant nothing to Peter. He made a mental note to ask Ned to look up the name once he told him everything that was going on. Ned. How was Peter supposed to tell Ned that his parents were Pepper and Tony _Stark_?

“Will he come after Peter again?” May asked.

“No,” Tony said darkly. “He’ll never be able to hurt Peter again.”

Peter shivered at the implication and wisely decided to shift away from that conversation. “How did I end up with my par – uh I mean – the other people?”

“It’s still unclear,” Pepper said.

“I have several theories on that,” Tony muttered, and Pepper elbowed him causing him to grunt.

“I would like to help, in any way I can,” May offered.

“Thank you,” Pepper nodded, offering May a small smile. “We appreciate that.”

“Ummm – Mrs Stark – Uh, Pepper?” Peter stumbled over her title, not quite able to bring himself to call her mum just yet. 

“Yes, Peter?” Pepper smiled at him, ignoring his awkward attempt to call her by her name.

Peter chewed his lip, hesitating for a moment. “Do you have a picture of me? As a baby I mean?”

Pepper’s smile widened and from the ground she brought up her purse. She slipped her hand inside and when she withdrew it there was a photograph in her hand. Still beaming, she slid it across the table to Peter.

Trembling slightly, Peter picked up the photograph and blinked at the picture. He sucked in a breath as his eyes drank in the picture. In the photo, Pepper held a small baby in her arms, beaming down at the small bundle. Tony, who looked younger, had his arm wrapped around her, grinning brightly down at the baby. Down at Peter.

He had never seen himself as a baby. He had asked May of course but she said they never had any baby pictures of him. He had found it odd but not suspicious at the time, thought they had been lost along with his so-called parents but it became suddenly real as to why there were never any baby pictures of him. _These_ were his parents. Not Mary and Richard Parker, the people he could hardly remember.

His parents, who were alive, who had been looking for _him_.

“Look how cute you were,” May cooed by his side.

“Yeah,” Peter choked out.

“This was the first time we took you home,” Pepper sniffed.

“You were so small,” Tony chuckled, shaking his head. “God I was terrified.”

Peter traced a finger over the picture. “You look so happy.”

“Of course, we were,” Tony huffed. “You are the best thing that ever happened to us. Happiest day of my life. Right up there with marrying you Pep.”

Peter laughed, somewhat hysterically and the next thing he knew there were tears rolling down his cheek and he was trying to suppress his sobs.

“I’m sorry,” Peter hiccupped. “I don’t – I don’t know why.”

“It’s okay,” May soothed, her hand rubbing his back. “It’s a lot.”

“Can I?” Pepper asked.

Peter heard her stand as he desperately wiped at his eyes. He felt May move away, her hand leaving her back before Pepper was taking her space, her hand gently running through his curls.

“I’m sorry,” Peter cried and then he was throwing himself into her arms.

Pepper grabbed him tightly, hugging him close as he sobbed into her arms.

“It’s okay,” Pepper whispered in his ear, pressing a kiss to his curls. “Oh, Peter, it’s okay.”

He felt the chair on his other side shift away and then there was another, larger, hand rubbing his back and the distinct scent of motor oil and coffee surrounded him.

“It’s okay, Kid,” Tony said.

Peter sobbed, pulling away from Pepper to wrap his arms around Tony, hugging him tightly. He felt Tony wrapping his arms around him just as tightly.

“It’s okay,” Tony repeated in his ear. “I’ve got you. I’ve got you, Pete.”


	3. Part 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am overwhelmed by the love that you are all giving this story! I'm having a lot of fun writing it and am so excited to share this with you all. I hope that you all enjoy this next installment :) 
> 
> My apologies for any mistakes that were made.

Tony couldn’t believe that he was holding his son in his arms. He felt every shudder of Peter’s body as his boy tried to stop crying, the overwhelming emotions of the past day catching up with him. He had missed this. He had loved carrying Peter around, settled on his hip as the boy watched with wide, curious eyes. Tony had vowed the moment he had found out that Pepper was pregnant to never be like his father. Tony promised to be a hands-on father, to help and he had been. 

He loved Peter. He loved how curious his little toddler had been and how utterly stunning Pepper looked every time she was with him. He had missed so much and yet he could hardly believe that his boy was back in his arms once again. He held onto Peter tightly, not wanting to ever let his son go again.

Eventually Peter’s sobs tapered off and pulled back as he took deep shuddery breaths to calm down. Peter’s cheeks were flushed red and he tried to duck his head to hide his face, but Tony caught his son’s chin before he could.

“Don’t hide. You have nothing to hide from us,” Tony murmured. 

Peter nodded, wiping his eyes once more and Tony gently thumbed away the one that he missed on his cheek.

“There we go,” Tony hummed, the gesture coming almost naturally to him. It made him start and he pulled his hand away. 

Pepper gently smoothed back Peter’s curls, the ones he had inherited from Tony, and smiled at him. “Feeling better?”

“A little,” Peter said. “Thanks.”

“Maybe,” May started hesitantly. “We could go somewhere more comfortable?”

Peter perked up at the idea, head already nodding. He locked eyes with Tony, suddenly looking shy. “Do you want to see where we live? You don’t have to, I mean, it’s nothing fancy or like the Tower you live in but it’s where I grew up.”

“Of course,” Pepper agreed. “We’d love to see the place.”

“Yeah?” Peter looked so excited that Tony’s smile came easily.

“Absolutely,” Tony said. He looked over to Agent Williamson. “That’s okay, right?”

“Of course,” Williamson said. “I’ll contact you tomorrow and we can discuss certain details further.”

Tony nodded, standing to his feet. They no longer felt like jelly when he had first entered the room and for the first time in a long time, Tony felt overwhelmingly happy. “Great, let’s go.”

“I’ll get the car,” Happy said and was the first to leave the room.

They followed Happy out of the room, both Tony and Pepper each keeping a hand on Peter as they walked through the FBI. Tony was aware of May following behind them, but he couldn’t step away from Peter. Though he believed May didn’t know about Peter, the overwhelming need to protect his son and never let him out of his sight again wanted to keep her at a distance.

Stepping outside the building was like a dream and soon enough he, Peter and Pepper were sliding into the back seat, while May and Happy took the front. May rattled off their address and Peter settled in between them as they pulled out into traffic.

To think, a few hours ago he was about to have a panic attack in the very seat he sat in.

“Do you have more pictures of us?” Peter asked, looking at his hands and twisting them together.

Tony laughed. “We have hundreds of us. JARVIS was a little trigger happy when it came to taking pictures of us.”

“JARVIS?” Peter frowned. “Who’s JARVIS?”

“JARVIS is the AI I created,” Tony said. “Well,  _ was _ the AI I created. He ran the house. We have a new one now. FRIDAY.”

“You built your own AI?” Peter’s red rimmed eyes grew wide. “How did you do it? How long did it take you to program all the codes?”

Pepper groaned playfully. “Please don’t get him started.”

“Hey, building JARVIS was an art and don’t tell me he didn’t like you better,” Tony winked at her.

“He liked you better too, Peter,” Pepper smirked.

“He did?” Peter grinned wistfully. “I wish I could remember that.”

Tony’s heart sunk at the words, the playfulness quickly fading. “Yeah, me too.”

“You’ll meet FRIDAY soon enough,” Pepper pushed through the threat of awkwardness. “I’m sure she’ll like you better than Tony soon enough.”

“Hey!”

_ Thank god for Pepper _ , Tony thought as Peter laughed out loud.

It didn’t take long before Happy was pulling up to the curb of a seven-story apartment building. Their car was by far the nicest that was parked on the street and they earned several looks by those who walked past.

They climbed out of the car and Tony took a deep breath, taking Pepper’s hand in his as they took their first steps towards the home their son had been raised in.

* * *

Peter felt his nerves return full force as they stepped into the lobby of their building. Everybody knew that Tony Stark was a billionaire and while Peter had never been embarrassed by the socio-economic status that he and May lived in, he was suddenly very nervous.

“May?” Peter whispered as she pressed the button for the elevator.

“Hmmm?” May hummed.

“Did we clean the apartment?” Peter whispered.

“Oh,” May bit her lip. “I don’t know.”

Peter cleared his throat, backing up slowly towards the stairs. “I’ll, umm, meet you up there. I’ve just got to – yeah.” Then he spun around and sprinted up the stairs.

He took two at a time, thanking the spider that bit him that he no longer had asthma and that their building's elevator was slow. He dashed up the seven flights of stairs in an instant and rushed to their door, fumbling for his keys.

The apartment wasn’t too bad. He and May always kept it relatively clean. He quickly picked his school books that he had left on the table before they had left for Thai the night before (had it really only been a night?) and picked up the stray magazines May had lying around. He hurried to his room, groaning at the slight mess. He straightened his desk as much as he could and desperately made sure that none of his Spider-Man gear was left out for anyone to find. He did not need anyone finding out he was Spider-Man today. There was only so much he could handle in such a short amount of time.

He skidded into the bathroom and began cleaning it up when he heard their voices in the hallway. He quickly sprayed the air freshener and listened to the door open and the shuffling of footsteps as everyone entered their apartment.

“Peter?” May called.

“Just a sec,” Peter shouted back.

He caught his reflection in the mirror and paused. So much had changed in one night, but Peter didn’t look any different. His face was pale and blotchy pink with tear stains, but he hadn’t changed at all. He wasn’t sure why he had expected to. At the sound of the kettle starting to boil, Peter splashed some water on his face, drying off with a towel before he stepped out into the living room.

“Tea or coffee?” May asked as she pulled down several mismatched mugs from the cabinets.

“Tea, please,” Pepper said. “Tony will have all the coffee you own.”

“Happy? What can I get you?” May asked.

“Coffee,” Happy moved to join her in the kitchen. “I’ll help.”

“Peter, why don’t you give them a tour?” May smiled encouragingly at him.

“Oh, yeah, sure,” Peter nodded. He looked around, unsure where to start. “Um, I guess this is our kitchen and living room where we do all our, um, cooking and eating.”

Tony snorted. “Really?”

Peter made a face at him. “Okay, ummm, bathroom is through there and May’s bedroom is that door and, uh, this is my room.”

Peter led them over to his door and with a deep breath he pushed it open. He shuffled inside, hyper aware of Pepper and Tony following closely behind him. He shuffled over to the computer he had built with Ned, picking up the closet tool and fiddled with it.

“You like electronics?” Tony asked, sliding close to him and checking out the arrange of pulled apart electronics that littered his desk.

“Oh, yeah. I build most of it myself, like this computer,” Peter started to ramble. “I found all the parts and me and Ned – he’s my best friend – we put this together.”

“You buy this second hand?” Tony asked, picking up his latest find, a DVD player.

“Oh no, this is all from the trash,” Peter shook his head. “I found that yesterday. A perfectly good DVD player and someone tossed it!”

“I knew it,” Pepper laughed. “I knew you would inherit Tony’s need for tinkering with things.”

“This is amazing,” Tony beamed at Peter. “This is college level stuff you’re doing here.”

Peter blushed, shrugging under their praise. “It’s fun, that’s all.”

“You’re going to love my lab,” Tony shifted away, eyes roaming curiously over everything. “It’s a kids’ dream.”

“What else do you like?” Pepper asked, sitting down on his bed. “Do you play any sports?”

Peter hesitated for a moment before he joined Pepper on the bed. “No, I um – I had –  _ have _ \- bad asthma.”

Pepper frowned, worry creasing her features. “How bad? We never saw any signs of asthma.”

It was weird, Peter thought, that they knew him as a baby. He had lived with Pepper and Tony for three years and he didn’t remember any of it. They remembered him, knew what he had liked and didn’t like but now they were strangers.

“I can’t play sports without having an asthma attack,” Peter shrugged. “But it hasn’t been playing up for a while.” Hadn’t since he had been bitten by the spider.

Pepper nodded and she relaxed but a hint of worry still remained. Peter hated that he put that there.

“Drinks are ready,” May’s voice floated in from the living room.

When they headed back into the living room, May had set up their small dining room table with a plate of date loaf in the middle. They all took a seat around the table, Happy choosing to hover nearby, eyes darting around the apartment.

“Have some date loaf,” May offered.

“Yeah,” Peter offered the plate to Tony. “It’s best you’ll ever have.”

Tony plucked one off the plate and popped it into his mouth. His eyes widened as he bit into it and Peter gave him a shit-eating grin.

“Great, right?”

Tony swallowed painfully. “Yeah, very nice. Wow, that is … something.”

Peter smiled smugly. May was not the best cook and he often avoided her creations when he could. He had been fooled one too many times by delicious smelling aromas. He knew for a fact that the date loaf, while edible, wasn’t the best, but Peter figured he needed to get Tony back for the sarcastic living room comment he made at the beginning of Peter’s tour.

Pepper giggled into her tea, obviously having caught on and Peter grinned at the sound.

“I’m glad you like it,” May said, oblivious to Tony’s inner taste bud dilemma. “Happy, would you like some?”

“I’m good,” Happy said deadpanned. 

“Go ahead, Happy,” Tony turned in his chair, staring at his friend. “Try it.”

Happy opened his mouth to retort but was interrupted by the sound of a phone ringing.

Tony patted his pockets, before reaching into the inside of the grey blazer he wore and pulled out the latest Stark phone. He winced at the name that flashed on the screen and looked apologetically at Pepper.

“I have to take this,” he said.

He stood up from the table and shuffled to the far side of the living room before picking it up. “Hey Honey Bear.”

Peter sat back in his chair, snatching up a piece of date loaf and bit of a piece, chewing it while he focused on hearing what Tony was saying.

“ _ Tony, where are you? You are supposed to be in this meeting _ ,” a male voice said on the other end.

“I know,” Tony muttered. “Something came up.”

“ _ Are you in your lab? Because I will come down there and drag your ass to this meeting _ . _ ” _

__

Tony scoffed. “I’d like to see you try.”

“ _ Tony. This is important. Fury is not happy that you are skipping out on this meeting _ .  _ I’ve got Rodgers glaring at me from across the table right now.” _

__

“Like I said, Rhodey, something came up,” Tony said.

Rhodey and Rodgers.

Peter tried not to choke on the piece of date loaf as he realised that Tony was talking to Colonel James Rhodey, A.K.A War Machine and Captain America.

_ “What came up, Tony? What could possibly be keeping you from this meeting? _ ”

“Peter,” Tony mumbled.

There was a pause on the other end of the line and Peter could hear Rhodey's sharp intake of breath.

_ “Are you having a bad day?” _

Peter frowned at this. Did Tony often have bad days because of him? And what exactly did a bad day entail? 

Tony let out a little laugh. “The opposite actually. Rhodey, we found Peter.”

_ “You  _ found  _ Peter? You found him? You know where he is?” _

__

Peter felt Tony’s eyes on the back of his head, and he did everything to try and look as if he was listening to May and Pepper talk.

“I’m in Queens, looking at my kid right now,” Tony said. “God Rhodey you should see him. He’s perfect.”

Peter dropped his gaze to the table, eyes watering up once again at the emotion he heard in Tony’s voice.

_ “How did you find him? How did this happen?” _

__

“It’s a long story. I’ll fill you in later tonight,” Tony said.

_ “Go. Go, be with him. I’ll talk to you later. Tony, I’m so happy for you and Pepper.” _

__

“Yeah, me too.” Tony paused, taking in a shaky breath. “I didn’t think I could be this happy again.”

_ “I did. Go.” _

__

Tony hung up the phone and a second later he was dropping back into the seat beside Peter. His arm draped over the back of Peter’s chair as he reached for his coffee, taking a sip.

“Not bad,” he murmured.

Peter leaned back into his chair, feeling Tony’s arm through his jacket. It was a nice feeling, he decided.

“What did I miss?” Tony asked.

“May was giving me her recipe,” Pepper smirked at her husband.

“Great,” Tony fake cheered. “The Avengers will love it.”

“You have a really nice home,” Pepper commented, looking around the place. “It looks like you and Peter are really comfortable here.”

“We have been,” May fiddled with her mug. “Things have been a little tighter since Ben passed away, but we’ve done fine.”

“There’s a really great Thai shop down the block,” Peter offered. “The owner larbs May.”

May stuck her tongue out at him. “Oh, he larbs me, does he?”

“He gave you free rice pudding,” Peter scrunched his nose.

“Everyone knows the way to a woman’s heart is food,” Tony said.

“Your dad gave me strawberries in an attempt to woo me,” Pepper smirked at Peter. “He forgot that I’m allergic to them.”

Peter whipped his head around to Tony, eyes widening.

“Wow, betrayed,” Tony glared at Pepper. “It was a romantic gesture.”

“Ah yes,” Pepper hummed. “Nothing says romance like your throat closing up.”

Peter clamped his mouth shut as he tried not to laugh. “That’s terrible.”

Tony ruffled Peter’s hair and the younger boy was delighted by the easy gesture. “Oh yeah? What smooth moves have you got?”

Peter blushed. “What? Noooooooo. No – I don’t – there’s no girl!”

May grinned at him from across the table.

* * *

Pepper felt something ease in her chest as she watched her son splutter, his cheeks flushing red. She had missed this. She had missed so much of her son’s life and here he was. Although she didn’t want to admit it, May Parker had raised her son well.

Already she could see so much of Tony in Peter. He was boarding on being, if not already, a genius and he had her husband’s eyes. She could see her softness in him though, and just looking at him made her want to cry all over again.

“What happens now?” Peter asked as the conversation lulled. “Everything’s changed.”

“Yes,” Pepper agreed. “Do you think it’s a good change?”

“Of course,” Peter looked at her, wide eyed and cheeks flushed. “It’s a good change. Huge. Gigantic. But a good change.”

“Those are some good descriptive words,” Tony teased. “But accurate.”

“Do I, like, live with you now?” Peter asked, eyes darting to May.

“Yes,” Tony said.

Pepper took a deep breath and as much as it pained her to do so, she said, “We want you to live with us. You’ve always been our son, but May’s been a big part of your life and we won’t take that away from you.”

May, Tony and Peter blinked at her.

“What?” May stared at her. “Pepper, I love Peter. I do, but he is  _ your  _ son. I would never take that away from you, especially when you missed so much of his life already.”

“I know,” Pepper said. She was beginning to see that May really did have Peter’s best interests at heart and that she had no idea that Peter had been stolen from them.She truly was his aunt. “Thank you, for saying that. This is all going to take some time to get used to.”

Peter nodded slowly. “I’m all May has left. I don’t want to leave her.”

“We won’t make you,” Tony placed the hand that had been draped over Peter’s chair on to his son’s shoulder. “Like Pep said, May’s been a big part of your life.”

Pepper smiled at Tony, proud of the way he was handling this. She knew he would rather scoop Peter up and hide him away in the tower so they could never be separated again. She appreciated the effort he was going to and going against what his instincts were telling him.

Obadiah had nearly killed Tony in that cave, but he nearly destroyed her husband when he took Peter. It had taken a long time for Tony to come to terms with what had happened (though he never stopped blaming himself), and he had practically turned the world upside down to find Peter. He would do anything to protect his son.

“I’ll always be there,” May smiled at Peter. “Always.”

“We will do this one day at a time,” Pepper said. “Maybe tonight both you and May could come stay at the tower so you can see where we live.” She smiled as Peter perked up at the idea.

“Could we?” Peter asked, looking at May.

“Absolutely,” May nodded. “Whatever you want to do Peter.”

“Yeah, okay. That would be awesome,” Peter beamed.

“How about we head over now?” Tony suggested. “We can give you the grand tour, order some lunch?”

“Sounds like a plan,” May said. “Peter, why don’t you grab some spare clothes?”

Peter was already pushing back his chair. “Sure. I won’t be a minute.”

“I’ll help you, May,” Pepper stood to her feet. “Tony, Happy, why don’t you clean up.”

“Whatever you say, love,” Tony said.

Happy snorted. “Sure, you listen to her but when I ask.”

Pepper left the boys to it and followed May into her bedroom. She quietly shut the door behind them and gave the room a curious glance. The room definitely held May’s personality but there were the few items that must have been Ben’s that remained.

“Thank you for including me,” May said as she moved to her closet. She pulled out a small bag and placed it on the bed. “I know this whole situation is crazy and impossible but thank you.”

Pepper nodded and took a steady breath. “As much as it pains me to say this; you know my son and I don’t.”

May paused on her way back to the closet. “You know, Ben and I never wanted kids.”

Pepper raised her eyebrow. “You didn’t?”

“Ben and I were content with each other,” May smiled softly. “We loved being Peter’s fun Aunt and Uncle. I love Peter and not once have I ever regretted taking him in. He’s the best thing that happened to Ben and me. But we never tried to be his parents.”

“Peter loves you,” Pepper said.

“And I love Peter,” May agreed.

“I want you to be Peter’s aunt,” Pepper smiled softly. “Peter’s already been taken from his family once. I don’t want to do that again.”

“Joining the Stark family,” May hummed playfully. “I don’t know.”

“It is a big ask,” Pepper smirked. “But I have a feeling you would fit right in.”

“I’ll do whatever is best for Peter,” May promised.

“Peter’s has been lucky to have you in his life,” Pepper said quietly. As she moved to help May pack, she didn’t want to entertain the possibility of what could have happened had Richard and Mary Parker survived.


	4. Part 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys thank you so much for all the love you are giving this story! I am so thrilled that so many of you are enjoying it! I have to say that I have had a lot of fun writing it and I honestly can't wait for you too see what is coming up! I written several chapter ahead and I am so excited! 
> 
> I apologize for any mistakes and I hope you enjoy :)

“Peter, are you sick or something?” Ned asked, his voice slightly tinny over Peter’s cracked phone. “You didn’t answer my text last night about the Lego Death Star and you weren’t at school today.”

“Ned, you are not going to believe the past 24 hours I’ve had,” Peter moaned, falling back on to the soft mattress. He stared up at the pristine white ceiling of his new bedroom – _in the Avengers Tower_. He was still trying to wrap his head around that fact that this was going to be his home.

“Dude, is it Spider-Man stuff?” Ned gasped. “Are you hurt? Is that why you didn’t come in?”

“No Ned, this isn’t Spider-Man related,” Peter said. “Remember how we had our fingerprints taken the other day?”

“Uh, yeah. That’s pretty hard to forget. I still have ink on my fingers,” Ned said.

“Yeah, well my fingerprints were already in the system,” Peter said. “Ned, the FBI were waiting at the apartment for me and May.”

“Dude, what?” Ned gasped. “The FBI were at your apartment? Were you arrested?”

“No,” Peter shook his head. “But they had some pretty life changing news for me.”

“Like bitten by a radioactive spider life changing?” Ned asked.

“Yeah, pretty much,” Peter let out a breath. “I was kidnapped as a baby. My parents weren’t actually _my parents_.” The silence on the other end of the phone was heavy and Peter hummed at the lack of response. “Yeah.”

“You’re going to have to explain from the beginning.”

Peter did. In great detail he explained the past 24 hours to his best friend. How Tony and Pepper Stark were his real parents and that he had been stolen from them as a toddler and it was only now that the truth had come out.

“and now I’m at the Tower,” Peter finished his explanation. He felt emotionally drained and felt himself melt further into the mattress. 

“Peter, what is even your life?” Ned asked. “This is – this is unbelievable. Tony Stark, _Iron Man_ , is actually your dad!”

A giddy smile stretched across Peter’s face. “I know.”

“Does he know that you're Spider-Man?” Ned asked.

Peter heaved himself up and scooted backwards on his bed until he hit his pillows. “What? No, he doesn’t know.”

“Oh. Are you going to tell him?”

“No – maybe – I don’t know,” Peter groaned. “It’s just a lot to take in at the moment. I mean, May doesn’t even know.”

“True,” Ned agreed. “Where are you now?”

“I’m in my room,” Peter glanced around the room.

It was much bigger than his room back in Queens. It was pretty empty at the moment, but Pepper had assured him that he could decorate it any way he wanted and that together they could go shopping for anything he might need. After arriving at the Avenger’s Tower, FRIDAY had taken them to the higher levels of the tower – to the Stark’s own personal floor.

“Technically the whole building is ours,” Tony had explained with a wink. “But this is our personal floor. Nobody but Pepper and I have access to it. And now you of course.”

“FRIDAY needs verbal permission from Tony or me for anyone to access this floor,” Pepper had smiled. “The rest of the floors are taken up by the Avengers and Stark Industries New York offices.”

The elevator had opened up into a large open living area that was bigger than his and May’s whole apartment and the view you could see from the floor to ceiling windows was something that Peter would never forget.

Tony and Pepper had given them a tour of the floor and Peter had to admit that his favourite part of their floor had been Tony’s personal lab. It took up nearly the whole west side of the floor and had more tools than Peter could ever dream off. Pepper and May had to drag the two of them out of there, promising that tomorrow they could spend time there, something that Peter was greatly looking forward to.

They had spent the afternoon going through all the pictures they had of Peter as a baby, sharing stories of the childhood he had no memory of before having an early dinner and Peter calling it a day.

“You have a room?” Ned gasped. “That’s so awesome.”

“Well, yeah I mean, I guess I’m going to be living here,” Peter picked at the comforter.

“Oh, yeah I guess you will be,” Ned said. “Will you still come to school?”

“Yeah, of course,” Peter said. “I mean, not for the rest of the week. This is a lot to get my head around.”

“No shit,” Ned said. “Hey, do you think I could come over on the weekend?”

“I think so. I’d have to ask,” Peter frowned.

“Awesome,” Ned said. “Oh, I have to go but I’ll call you after school tomorrow.”

“Oh, yeah okay, that would be awesome. Bye, Ned,” Peter said.

“Bye, dude.”

They hung up and Peter sunk back against the pillows of his new bed. He rolled over and connected his phone to his charging cord before he scooted himself under the covers and flopped around until he was comfortable. He thought it would take him a while to fall asleep with the amount of his thoughts running through his head but as soon as he closed his eyes he was out.

* * *

“Can I get you another drink?” Pepper asked May, nodding at her empty wine glass.

“No, thank you,” May shook her head. “I think I’m going to head to bed myself. It’s been a big day.”

Tony snorted. “You could say that.”

“I’ll see you in the morning,” May stood to her feet, brushing her hair back from her face. “Thank you again for letting me stay.”

Pepper smiled. “Sleep well.”

As May left the room and headed to the spare guest room, Tony slumped against the couch and closed his eyes. He heard Pepper shift closer to him and soon her fingers were brushing through his hair.

“You okay?” Pepper asked, her voice quiet.

“I can’t believe he’s here,” Tony said. He blinked open his eyes and stared at his wife. “He’s actually here.”

“I know,” Pepper smiled brightly. “It feels like a dream.”

Tony snaked an arm around Pepper’s waist, toying with the side of the shirt she wore. “He looks like me.”

“He does,” Pepper hummed. “He’s adorable. I knew he would grow up to be handsome, but I mean, he is just so cute.”

Tony choked on his laughter. “He’s got our humour. Can’t believe he got me with that date loaf.”

Pepper laughed loudly. “You’re face.”

“Yeah, laugh it up,” Tony grumbled. “I took one for the team.”

“So brave,” Pepper cooed and placed a quick kiss on his temple. “Our baby’s home.”

Tony’s breath stuttered out of him. “Yeah, he is.”

“Boss, sorry to interrupt,” FRIDAY said. “Rhodey is asking permission to enter your floor.”

“Is he alone?” Tony asked.

“Yes, Boss.”

“Let him in,” Tony grunted as he sat up properly. He smiled at Pepper, capturing her lips in a gentle kiss.

“Should I come back later?” Rhodey’s grin was audible as Tony pulled away from Pepper.

Grinning at his best friend, Tony winked at him from over the couch. “You could always find another room.”

Rolling his eyes, Rhodey crossed the room and joined the two of them on the couch. “Alright, fill me in. How the hell did you find Peter?”

“It was a fluke,” Tony shook his head. “The kids’ school did some sort of fingerprinting and when they ran his through the system it got flagged.”

“Fingerprinting at school?” Rhodey repeated. “Out of all the resources we’ve used to find him, and he gets fingerprinted at school.”

“Yeah,” Tony huffed. “Tell me about it.”

“Is he okay?” Rhodey asked, eyes darting between the two parents.

“He's fine,” Pepper assured their friend. “He’s a normal, healthy teenage boy.”

“Thank god,” Rhodey leaned back against the couch heavily. “I was so worried that …” he trailed off not wanting to voice the words they had all thought of in the past. That Peter could have been abused by those he had taken him. “I’m glad he’s okay.”

“You and me both,” Tony grunted.

“Where has he been?” Rhodey asked.

“Would you believe he’s been in Queens this entire time?” Tony quirked an eyebrow.

Rhodey looked between Pepper and Tony, looking for any signs that they were joking. “You’re kidding me. Queens? He’s been that close this whole time?”

“He’s been living with who they thought was his aunt. May Parker,” Pepper explained.

“Who the hell is May Parker?” Rhodey demanded.

“Keep voice your down,” Tony shushed his friend. “She’s actually here, in the guest room.”

“You brought your kids kidnapper to the tower and gave her the guest room?” Rhodey asked, deadpanned. “You’ve officially lost it.”

“May wasn’t the kidnapper,” Pepper sighed.

“No, that title goes to Richard and Mary Parker,” Tony growled. “Both who are dead, by the way. Plane crash. Peter went to live with who they thought was his Aunt and Uncle.”

“Jesus,” Rhodey breathed.

“May had no idea that her sister and brother-in law had kidnapped Peter,” Pepper said. “She’s been really good about the whole thing.”

“Do you know why they kidnapped him?” Rhodey asked.

“FRIDAY is running their names as we speak,” Tony said. “She should have everything she can find on them soon. FBI are doing their own search of course.”

“SHEILD can search for them too,” Rhodey said. “I’m sure Fury can dig something up on them.”

“My theory is money,” Tony scrubbed a hand over his face again. “Obi probably paid them off.”

Rhodey reached out and gently patted his friend's shoulder. “You got your son back. Safe and alive. That’s what you should be focusing on right now.”

“Yeah,” Tony nodded at his friend.

“Now, tell me you have a picture of my nephew,” Rhodey clapped his hands together. “I want to see if he got Pepper’s good looks.”

Tony squawked as Pepper laughed and said, “FRIDAY, please bring up an image of Peter.”

FRIDAY projected an image of Peter onto the TV screen. It was a picture of him in Tony’s lab, looking wide-eyed and a smile of utter disbelief and awe on his face.

Rhodey leaned forward, a hand coming up to cover his mouth as he stared. “Damn,” he finally muttered. “He got your looks Tony.”

Tony shoved Rhodey, nearly knocking him off the couch. “You’re demoted.”

“Pftt, as if,” Rhodey scoffed. “He’s adorable.”

“Isn’t he,” Pepper smiled. “Want to re-meet him in the morning?”

“Absolutely,” Rhodey nodded. “Nothing could stop me.”

Pepper stood up, stretching. “I’m going to bed. Don’t stay up too late, please.”

“I’ll be there soon,” Tony assured her.

“Night, Pep,” Rhodey said.

“How did the meeting go?” Tony asked as Pepper had left the room. He adjusted himself on the couch, turning his body to face Rhodey, eye flicking to the image of Peter every so often.

“Fury wants us to go out and bring Spider-Man in ASAP,” Rhodey said.

“Forcefully?” Tony quirked a brow.

“If it comes to it,” Rhodey shrugged. “I’m not sure how the vigilante will respond but Steve wants to talk to him first. See if we can get him to come in peacefully.” 

“Who’s going?” Tony asked.

“Us, Steve, Clint and Natasha,” Rhodey said. “We’re the air support in case the little web-slinger takes it to higher ground. We’re going tomorrow, see if he’s around.”

Tony pressed his lips together, eyes locking onto the image of Peter.

“Hey Tones, it will just be for a couple of hours,” Rhodey promised. “I know you just got Peter back, and this is poor timing, but we need your help.”

“Yeah, yeah I know,” Tony sighed. “God, I’m feeling really overprotective now Rhodes. I don’t want my kid out of my sight.”

“Hey, I get it,” Rhodey looked to the image of Peter. “We’re all going to be protective of him for a while. Have a sleep on it. We can talk more about it in the morning. It’s been a big day.”

“Yeah,” Tony nodded. “Yeah, you’re right. Thanks platypus. I’ll think about it.”

They stood, FRIDAY switching the television off and the image of Peter disappeared.

“I’m really happy for you Tony,” Rhodey said. “Really happy.”

“Thanks honey bear,” Tony’s smile was a little wobbly. “I just can’t believe he’s back.”

* * *

When Peter woke up, he momentarily forgot where he was. It took him a moment to recognise the four white walls and the light blue bedding sheets that weren’t his. He was at the Avengers Tower. He rolled over onto his stomach, squinting at the morning light that filtered into the room and lifted his head, looking for his phone.

“S’ time,” Peter grumbled to himself.

“It is 9:23 Peter.”

Peter’s eyes snapped open and he flew out of bed, landing lightly on his feet and he spun around, searching for the voice.

“Who's there?” Peter blinked, heart rate speeding up. His senses weren’t going off, but he had learnt that they couldn’t always be trusted.

“My apologies for startling you Peter,” FRIDAY spoke, and Peter smacked himself on the face with his palm.

“Right! FRIDAY! Sorry,” Peter shook his head. “Good morning.”

“Good Morning Peter,” FRIDAY sounded amused, if that was possible for an AI. Peter wasn’t sure but Tony Stark was a genius, so it was possible. “Boss wanted me to tell you when you woke up that they are in the kitchen and breakfast is ready.”

Peter perked up at the sound of breakfast. “Awesome. I’ll be there in a minute. I’ll just get dressed.”

“I’ll alert Boss,” FRIDAY said.

Changing quickly, Peter exited his bedroom and he stepped into the hallway. He automatically picked up voices in the kitchen. He could make out May and Pepper chatting together, the sound of a coffee machine running. His stomach fluttered nervously, and he shuffled down the hall. Yesterday had been a whirlwind of information and he wasn’t sure how today was going to go. Would Tony and Pepper still be excited to see him?

“Morning kid,” Tony beamed at him, immediately spotting him as he entered the kitchen.

“Morning,” Peter replied, the smile coming easily to his face. The twisting of his stomach settled as he saw both Pepper and Tony smiling brightly at him and he mentally shook himself for feeling insecure.

“Hi sweetie,” Pepper greeted. “Did you sleep okay?”

“Yeah, great,” Peter said. “The bed is really comfortable.”

“Good,” Pepper held out a plate for Peter to take. “Come have some breakfast.”

“Yes please,” Peter shuffled forward as his stomach rumbled at the mention of food.

There was a spread of food spread out across the kitchen bench, from fresh fruit, to cereal and pancakes. Peter picked himself some pancakes, careful not to overload his plate which would be suspicious. When his plate was full he took a free stool next to May who ruffled his hair in a good morning gesture.

“Just in time, Platypus,” Tony said. “I want you to meet your nephew.”

Peter, who had just shoved a forkful of pancake into his mouth, started choking as he inhaled sharply as he looked up into the smiling face of Colonel James Rhodey, A.K.A War Machine, entering the kitchen. He coughed, cheeks puffing up as he tried desperately not to spit his pancake out at the man.

May thumped him on the back and he managed to swallow down the pancake and take in a gulping breath of air.

“Easy,” Tony coached, face set in both concern and amusement. “You alright?”

“Fine,” Peter gasped. “Oh god I just choked on a pancake in front of War Machine.”

“It’s okay,” Rhodey said. “I’ve seen you in diapers. Can’t get much worse than that.”

Peter's face dropped in horror. “Oh my god noooooooo! No that’s so not cool!”

“So, it’s cool that I’ve seen you in diapers?” Tony raised his eyebrow.

“Well, yes – I mean no - but it’s War Machine! He’s so cool!” Peter gaped.

“You hear that Tony, I’m cool,” Rhodey smirked smugly. “Peter, I am so glad you are home.”

“Hang on,” Tony frowned at Peter. “Rhodey isn’t cool. I’m the cool one.”

“If you have to say you’re cool, you’re not cool,” Rhodey grabbed a mug off the counter and moved to the coffee pot.

“Don’t worry Tony,” May smirked over her own coffee cup. “Peter is obsessed with Iron Man. You’re his favourite Avenger.”

“May!” Peter spluttered and Tony beamed. Peter groaned, feeling his cheeks go hot and dropped his gaze to his plate and stabbed his fork at his pancake. “I hate you.”

“No need to be embarrassed,” Tony said, sounding far to smug for Peter’s liking. “I’m everyone’s favourite Avenger.”

“Now that I’ve embarrassed you for the day, I have to head off to work,” May said, getting to her feet.

“I can call Happy to give you a lift,” Tony said, pulling out his phone and quickly tapping at the screen.

“Thank you,” May nodded.

“Ummm, are you going to come back?” Peter asked hesitantly.

“Not tonight,” May said softly, smoothing back Peter’s curls. “I’ve got a double shift at the hospital today and won’t finish until late. But how about I come back tomorrow? For dinner?” She looked at Pepper and Tony for confirmation.

“Excellent,” Pepper smiled. “I’ll walk you down.”

May kissed the side of Peter’s head. “Have a good day, sweetie.”

“Yeah, you too. Larb you,” Peter said.

“Larb you too,” May ruffled his hair one more time and then she disappeared with Pepper.

“I have to head out too,” Rhodey said apologetically. “I’ve got a few meetings. I’ll see you at three, Tony?”

“Yeah,” Tony sighed. “I’ll see you at three.”

Rhodey patted Tony’s back and turned to Peter. “It’s really good to see you again, Peter. We’re really happy you’re home. We will hang out later and I’ll tell you all the embarrassing stories about your dad.”

Peter grinned. “Yeah! Yeah that would be awesome.”

“There are zero embarrassing stories,” Tony said deadpanned.

“Uh huh, whatever you say,” Rhodey rolled his eyes. “See you late, Pete.”

“What’s at three?” Peter asked once Rhodey had left and he had eaten a few more pancakes from his plate (this time without choking on it).

“Unfortunately, I have some Avengers business,” Tony sighed. “I have to step out for a couple of hours.”

“Is it a mission?” Peter asked, trying not to sound too excited. Judging by Tony’s amused smile he didn’t succeed.

“Not a mission,” Tony smirked. “Just a little recon.”

“On who?” Peter asked. “Or is it classified? Please don’t let it be classified.”

Tony barked out a laugh. “You really like this stuff, huh?”

Peter shrugged, cheeks pinking. May hadn’t been lying when she told Tony that Peter was a little obsessed with Iron Man. He was Peter’s favourite hero out all the Avengers and all this time he had been worshipping his father. The thought made his stomach swoop and his cheeks heat up even more.

“What do you think about Spider-Man?” Tony asked, taking a sip of his coffee and watching Peter over the rim of his cup.

Peter’s heart sped up and he tried to keep his face looking neutral. “Spider-Man? Yeah, he seems cool.”

“He works around Queens,” Tony said. “Have you ever seen him?”

“Only on You-Tube,” Peter lied. “My friend Ned really likes him. He seems cool though, helping out the little guy and his webs look awesome.”

“Yeah, they are pretty neat,” Tony agreed, looking thoughtful. “I haven’t been able to figure them out yet.

Something giddy rose up in Peter at the thought that Tony sounded impressed with his design. Maybe if Tony was impressed enough with Spider-Man, he would be okay with the idea that it was his son. Or maybe he wouldn’t be.

“Is that who you are looking for?” Peter asked, swallowing thickly as his thoughts churned over.

Tony nodded. “We just want to have a chat with him, get to know what his deal is. Hey, want to see something cool?”

“Always,” Peter grinned. He jumped off the seat when Tony waved at him to follow.

He followed Tony down the hallway towards the man’s personal lab. FRIDAY turned on the lights as they entered and Peter couldn’t help but look around in awe once again. Entering the lab for the second time was just as amazing and as wonderful as the first. Peter's eyes automatically drifted to the suits that stood proudly on the far wall. They each held scratches and dents from where they had endured hits during a battle. Battles that Peter had watched on the TV and YouTube over and over again. It suddenly struck Peter that all this time he had been watching his father do the impossible.

“Alright, what do you think?” Tony asked.

Peter tore his gaze away from the suits and his jaw dropped.

Tony stood a little away from his old suits and stood by a brand-new suit. Only it wasn’t for Iron Man.

“Is that for Spider-Man?” Peter asked, drifting to Tony’s side.

“Yep,” Tony said, popping the ‘p’.

“You made him a suit?” Peter frowned, eyes snapping to Tony. “Why – why would you make him a suit?”

“Have you seen the onesie he’s swinging around in?” Tony laughed.

“It’s not that bad,” Peter defended. He was on a budget and he didn’t really know how to sew. It was the best he could do without drawing May’s attention to it.

“It could be much better,” Tony pointed at the suit. “Which is why I have been working on a suit for him.”

“Why?” Peter asked quietly. “You said you didn’t know him?”

Tony shrugged. “If Spider-Man really is looking after the little guys like you said, then he should have some proper gear to do it.”

“Wow,” Peter breathed, a smile tugging at his lips. “That’s really nice of you.”

Tony shrugged, seeming uncomfortable with the emotions. “Yeah, well. It’s to help him. It’s basic at the moment. I’m not one hundred percent sure what powers he has.”

Peter felt his shoulder relax at that news. “Could I help?”

Tony raised his brows and grinned. “Sure, why not.”

* * *

Pepper and Rhodey stood at the door to Tony’s lab, both silent as they watched Peter and Tony work together. They looked so much alike as they worked, the conversation flowing easily between the two of them.

“It’s really something, isn’t it?” Rhodey said, smiling softly at the scene before him.

“Yeah,” Pepper hummed. “I can’t believe how much he’s like Tony.”

“You definitely have your hands full,” Rhodey agreed.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Pepper sighed. “All Tony ever wanted to do was share this with Peter and he _finally_ gets to.” She sniffed and wiped the stray tear that fell down her cheek. She smiled at Rhodey as he squeezed her shoulder. “We missed so much of him growing up.”

“He’s home now,” Rhodey said. “And he still has a lot of growing left in him. Unless he inherited Tony’s size then not so much.”

Pepper giggled, shooting Rhodey a look.

“Seriously though, do you think I can get Tony to leave for a couple of hours?” Rhodey asked, looking back to Tony and Peter.

“You can try,” Pepper shrugged. “If you do, bring him home in one piece. I don’t want to scare Peter.”

“I promise,” Rhodey said. “We will be back up support only.”

“Okay,” Pepper said, her voice a little shaky. “Just, try and be quick. Please.”

Rhodey nodded. “I’ll do my best.”


	5. Part 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys! Thank you so much for all the love that you have given this story! I am so glad you are all enjoying it! I've had a lot of fun writing this and it's good to see so many of you enjoying it! 
> 
> Apologies for any mistakes and I hope you enjoy :)

“Any signs of the web-slinger?” Captain Steve Rogers asked over the comms.

“None,” Tony grumbled from the top of the building he stood on. “FRIDAY has scanned all security cameras and there is no sign of him. I say we call it a day.”

“It’s only been a couple of hours,” Clint’s voice came over his comms. He was perched on a nearby building, sharp eyes scanning the area for any signs of the red and blue clad figure. “He may not have started patrolling yet.”

“Whoever they are doesn’t seem to have a strict routine,” Natasha added from her position on the ground. “Except he’s never really out during the morning.”

“Great, how about you give me a call when he’s out and about?” Tony suggested.

“Why so anxious to leave, Tony?” Natasha asked. “Does this have something to do with the fact we suddenly aren’t allowed on your floor?”

“We have a communal floor,” Tony grumbled. “Why you need to be on my _personal_ floor I will never understand.”

While the Avengers were aware that Tony had a son, who had been kidnapped, they didn’t know that Peter had returned. Rhodey knew him well enough to know not to say anything just yet to their fellow teammates. While Tony trusted his team and they were his family, he didn’t need them in his business just yet. He wanted to give himself, Peter and Pepper a chance to adapt to the new change in their life.

“It’s only five,” Steve said. “Let’s give it another hour and then we will call it.”

Tony groaned but conceded to another hour of hanging out on a rooftop.

“FRIDAY, text Pepper and tell her I’ll be another hour,” Tony said.

“Message sent,” FRIDAY responded. After a moment, the AI continued. “Pepper has responded, Boss. It reads; One hour. Don’t be any later.”

“Trust me, nothing is keeping me out here for more than an hour,” Tony said. “What are they up to, FRIDAY? Is Peter okay?”

“They are currently in the living room looking through the Ikea website,” FRIDAY relayed. “I believe they are looking at things to decorate Peter’s room with. It appears they have made a game out of the names.”

Tony grinned and felt a twinge of envy that he was missing out on this. His father was always working, never really making the time or effort for Tony. He had already missed so much of Peter’s life he really didn’t want to miss out on anymore. While being Iron Man was important, Peter was more so. Tony never wanted to be like his father, who was never there and rarely showed interest in what Tony was working on. 

Rhodey landed on the same building as Tony, face plate snapping back as he walked heavily over to Tony. Retracting his own face plate, Tony quirked a brow at Rhodey.

“Uh, I called this building,” Tony lifted an arm and pointed. “Your building is that way.”

“You’re going to have to tell them soon,” Rhodey ignored Tony’s quip. “We are a team and they have helped you try and find Peter.”

“I know,” Tony grumbled. “I will tell them. Soon. I just want Peter to myself for a bit. I want him to like me.”

Rhodey’s expression softened. “Tones, I’m pretty sure you don’t have to worry about Peter liking you or not.”

Tony shrugged. “I said I never wanted to be like my dad and yet I lost him.”

“You didn’t lose him,” Rhodey scoffed. “He was _stolen_ from you and I watched you nearly kill yourself trying to find him. You are already 10 times the father than Howard was.”

Tony let out a shaky breath. “I got my family back, Rhodey. I just want that to myself for a little bit before I share Peter with you all.”

“I get that,” Rhodey said. “And that’s cool. But you can’t keep him to yourself forever. I want to show off my nephew.”

“Being Peter’s Uncle does not make you any cooler,” Tony pointed out.

“Uh, yeah, it does,” Rhodey scoffed. “Did he choke on a pancake for you?”

“Please, I’m his favourite Avenger,” Tony grinned. So much warmth was bubbling up in his chest he was sure that his arc reactor was glowing brighter.

* * *

Peter found it easy to be comfortable in the presence of Pepper. She was so much like May that in no time the two of them had made themselves comfortable in his room as they worked together in an attempt to design the type of room that he wanted.

“Are you sure?” Peter hesitated as Pepper added yet another item to the online shopping cart. They had moved on from Ikea (once their laughter had subsided and they had designed a room using only items that started with the letter O) and were now on amazon looking at posters.

“Of course,” Pepper smiled. “This is your room, Peter. We want you to be comfortable here.”

“We’ve already spent so much money though,” Peter said, still trying to wrap his head around that fact. Growing up he had never gone without anything, but he knew how hard May and Ben had worked and he never wanted to take advantage of that.

“How about we get two posters and call it a night?” Pepper suggested.

“Yeah, okay,” Peter's shoulders relaxed. He grabbed the tablet and quickly searched for the two Star Wars posters he had been eyeing. “Can I get these ones?” he showed the table to Pepper.

“Of course,” Pepper beamed and smoothly tapped her way to the check out. “Your dad should be back soon.”

“Really?” Peter asked, perking up. He honestly hadn’t thought Tony would be gone for as long as he had been. Peter knew for a fact that they would not be meeting Spider-Man that afternoon and wondered why they had stuck around for so long waiting when it was clear after the first two hours he wasn’t going to show.

“Yep. You should be able to see him fly back to the tower,” Pepper said.

Without waiting for Pepper, Peter dashed from his bedroom to the living room, skidding on his socks as he all but sprinted to the big glass windows. He searched the skyline for the familiar red and gold suit, but the New York skyline was empty. 

“There he is,” Pepper joined him by the window and pointed. 

Peter bounced lightly on his feet as he saw Iron Man flying through the air, heading directly towards them. Peter’s jaw dropped as he watched Iron Man grow closer and closer until he was almost pushed against the class to watch the suit land on the landing above them.

“Awesome,” Peter’s breath fogged up the class as the suit was pulled off Tony as he walked towards the building.

“It is a sight,” Pepper agreed.

Only when Tony was no longer visible did Peter move away from the window.

“What do you want for dinner?” Pepper asked.

Peter shrugged. “I’m fine with anything.”

“How about pizza?” Pepper suggested. “What toppings do you like?”

“Meat lovers,” Tony answered as he strode out of the elevator.

“That was amazing!” Peter cried, bounding over to Tony’s side. “And the way you landed! The timing and the programming of that is unreal. The calculations alone are impressive, but you make it look so easy.”

Tony reached out and ruffled Peter’s hair. “Thanks Kid. We had a few practice runs, that's for sure.”

“Did you talk to Spider-Man?” Peter asked, sliding onto the kitchen stool as Pepper handed Tony a water bottle.

“He was a no show,” Tony unscrewed the lid and took a sip.

Peter tried to keep a straight face. “Oh, that’s too bad.”

Tony shrugged. “He’ll come out sooner or later.”

“You’re not going to hurt him, right?” Peter asked. “It’s just to talk to him?”

“I promise, Peter,” Tony said seriously. “We just want to talk to him.”

Peter nodded, relaxing into the stool. “Hey, can I invite Ned over?”

“He’s your best friend, right?” Pepper asked. “Sure, I don’t see why not.”

“He goes to Midtown with you?” Tony asked.

“Yeah,” Peter grinned. “He’s going to die when he comes here. It’s going to be awesome.”

* * *

Ned didn’t die when he stepped into the tower but it’s a close thing. His lips moved but no words came out as he took everything in.

Peter had gone with Happy to pick up Ned from school, leg bouncing impatiently in the back seat. Ned had been waiting eagerly, duffle back on one shoulder ready for the best sleepover in their entire lives. Happy had put up the divider the moment the two of them had started rambling about what they were going to do at the tower.

“Hi Ned,” Pepper greets as Peter leads his best friend to the kitchen.

Pepper is set up at the kitchen, papers spread out before her and her tablet in her hands. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too,” Ned managed to get out, but it comes out in an awed whisper that makes Pepper smirk.

“What are you boys going to do?” Pepper asked.

“I’m going to give Ned the tour and then we are going to build his new Lego death star,” Peter said.

“It’s three thousand, eight hundred and three pieces,” Ned added, finally finding his voice.

“Sounds fun,” Pepper smiled but Peter thought she was just humouring them. “Your dad is in the lab, Peter.”

“We’ll go say hi,” Peter said.

Dragging his best friend by the elbow, they stopped by Peter’s room first to drop off Ned’s bag before Peter gave him the tour.

Ned was the perfect friend, gasping and awing in all the right places and by the time they got to the lap, he was a blubbering mess of excitement and awe.

“Oh, I forgot to tell you,” Ned said as they stepped into the lab. “MJ asked where you were.”

“She did?” Peter frowned.

“Yeah, she asked if you were sick,” Ned shrugged as he spun in a slow circle, taking everything in.

“What did you tell her?” Peter asked.

“I lied and said you were sick,” Ned said. “I don’t think she believed me though.”

“Do you think she knows?” Peter asked.

“Knows what?” Tony asked, suddenly appearing behind them.

Both jumped, whipping around to face the older man who was smirking at them. Though Peter hadn’t seen him when they first entered, he knew that Tony had been listening the whole time.

“That I’m your long-lost-kidnapped son,” Peter said.

“Pepper’s being keeping a tight lid on the media,” Tony said. “So unless your friend is some secret mind reading witch, or Ned here has blabbed-“

“Iron man knows my name,” Ned whispered.

“ – I don’t think she knows,” Tony finished.

Ned and Peter looked at each other, faces serious. “She definitely knows.”

“Did you blab?” Tony frowned at Ned.

“No,” Ned said mournfully. “But MJ can totally read minds.”

Peter nodded solemnly. “She knows everything.”

Tony looked between the two boys. “I can’t tell if you are being serious or not.”

“It's fine,” Peter said. “I’ll talk to her when I go back to school on Monday. Hey, what are you working on?”

Tony gazed at Peter for a beat before he sighed and waved them over to his workbench where a hologram was being projected. “I’m working on Spider-Man’s suit.”

“You’re building Spider-Man a suit!” Ned yelped, looking wide at Peter.

“It's awesome,” Peter said, unable to stop the wide grin that spread across his face.

“Dude, Iron Man is making Spider-Man a suit,” Ned repeated. “That is so awesome.”

Tony’s eyes widened as he watched his son and his best friend go through an overly complicated secret handshake and by the time they were finished he could only stare.

“Can Ned see the suit?” Peter asked, turning to look pleadingly at Tony.

* * *

Tony took one look at his son’s big, brown Bambie eyes and immediately caved.

_Ahh shit_ , he thought and looked to the ceiling. “FRIDAY, bring out the suit.”

In a pace that Tony didn’t think was possible for two teenage boys, Peter and Ned were across the workshop in an instant, staring as FRIDAY brought the suit out from where it was being stored.

While Ned and Peter awed over the suit, Tony pulled out his phone and composed a text message.

_Is there a way to say no to Peter when he pulls out those damn Bambie eyes? T_

He didn’t have to wait long when May Parker responded.

_I call it the Bambie effect. What’s worse, he has no idea he does it._

_He’s oblivious to the power he has so he won’t abuse it._

_Good luck though. M_

Shaking his head, Tony slipped the phone back into his pocket and he crossed the workshop to the boys and was glad to see they were only looking and not touching.

“What do you think?” Tony asked.

“It’s awesome,” Ned said. “Have you accommodated his web-shooters?”

“Sure have,” Tony said. “I’m working on improving them, but I haven’t figured out his formula yet.”

“Improving them how?” Peter asked.

They hadn’t discussed this when Tony had allowed Peter to help him work on the suit one afternoon. They had discussed more about the flexibility of the suit and what it was made out of and how Tony was working on keeping the wiring as flat and flexible as possible.

“More web-shooter combos,” Tony shrugged. “Give Spider-Man a bit more to work with than just his usual webs.”

Ned bounced up and down on the balls of his feet at the idea. “Wicked. What about the mask? Where are the goggles?”

Tony snorted. “Those cheap things? Please, I put in these,” Tony pointed at the panels that would be Spider-Man’s eyes. “Give him more range to see out of.”

“Are they tinted?” Peter asked, reaching out with a finger to tap the eyes lenses.

“Semi,” Tony said. “He needs to be able to see properly out of them.”

“Are they reactive?” Peter asked. “They look so…big. I mean, Spider-Man has smaller goggles, right? What if these are too big?”

“Yeah, Spider-Man’s goggles move with his eyes,” Ned added. “Have you compensated for the sensory input that might occur?”

Tony blinked. “Sensory input?”

“Yeah, like, what if the goggles react to him so that he can focus more clearly during a fight,” Peter suggested.

“Too much going on and it could be a lot,” Ned continued. “So, the goggles help him block out one thing so he can focus on another.”

“How many times have you watched those Spider-Man videos?” Tony asked, looking between the two boys with a frown. Tony had been watching the videos since FRIDAY had first picked it up and yet these two boys had managed to pick up on some things that he had missed.

“A few,” Peter hedged.

“We’re big fans,” Ned nodded.

“We should go,” Peter said, grabbing Ned by the elbow and backing away. “We have a Lego Death star to put together before Ned goes home.”

“What about the suit?” Ned whispered, not as quietly as he should have as Tony could still here.

“Later,” Peter hissed. Louder and with an awkward grin, “Bye! We will be in the living room.”

Tony watched as his son dragged Ned from the lab, the door closing behind them with a gentle click.

“That was weird,” Tony eyes narrowed. He shook his head and looked back down at the suit. “FRIDAY bring up a video of Spider-Man. Focus on the mask,”

* * *

“Iron Man is making you a suit,” Ned said as Peter dragged him down the hall.

“Shhh,” Peter hissed. “Dude, that was close.”

“Come on,” Ned waved his hand. “He didn’t know.”

Peter shook his head. “We have to be more careful. I’m not ready to tell them yet. I know Tony said that the Avengers only want to talk to Spider-Man -“

“The Avengers want to talk to Spider-Man?” Ned interrupted. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I’m telling you now,” Peter said. “They want to talk to me. See if I’m Avenger material.”

“You’re going to be an Avenger,” Ned repeated, wide eyed. “Dude, your life is awesome.”

“That’s if Tony doesn’t freak out that I’m Spider-Man,” Peter said. “I overheard him talking to Rhodey and he’s really happy I’m home.”

“Of course, they are,” Ned said. “You’re their kid.”

“I know,” Peter said. “I just - I don’t want to make him unhappy. I heard Pepper crying last night. She was saying how much she had missed. I – I don’t want to make her cry again.”

They came out of the hallway to find Pepper still sitting at the table. She continued to work as they stared at her. She must have felt their presence because she looked up and smiled at them, no evidence that she had been crying only just last night.

“Hey, you boys okay?” Pepper asked. “Can I get you anything?”

“We’re good,” Peter said. “We’re just going to start on the Lego. Is it okay if we use the living room?”

“Go ahead,” Pepper smiled.

Peter nudged Ned and the two scurried past Pepper and settled around the coffee table with Ned’s Lego set.

“Dude,” Ned leaned in close, keeping his voice low. “What are you going to do when you start patrolling again?”

Peter’s face paled. “I have no idea.”

* * *

“Boss, I have finished searching for Richard and Mary Parker,” FRIDAY said.

Tony looked over his shoulder and found that the lab was empty. “Where is Peter and Ned?”

“In the living room,” FRIDAY responded promptly.

“Alright. Lock down the lab, sweetheart. I don’t want either of them hearing this,” Tony said. “Show me what you found.”

The image of Spider-Man’s mask was replaced by several holograms of files. Tony sat on his stool arms crossed over his chest as he looked at them.

“Break it down for me,” Tony requested sharply.

“Richard and Mary Parker were scientists,” FRIDAY said. “They worked for several corporations but most noticeably OSCORP. Around the same time Peter was taken, they left OSCORP and were privately funded by an unknown benefactor.”

“Obi,” Tony growled.

“After they left OSCORP there were no journals or publications made by either of the Parker’s. Their work was deemed classified. Three years later they were killed in a privately chartered flight.”

“Anything on their financials?” Tony asked.

“I’m sorry, Boss,” FRIDAY said. “I haven’t been able to locate anything significant in their financials.”

“You did good, FRIDAY,” Tony assured his AI. “This may be something our super spies need to find out.” He sighed heavily. It looked like he was finally going to have to involve the Avengers. “What about Ben Parker?”

New files popped up in the hologram.

“I have gone through Ben Parker’s files, Boss,” FRIDAY said. “There is a storage unit in Queens under his name. It has been a yearly rental for the past eleven years. There are two mailing addresses attached to the lease.”

A rental agreement was brought to the front of the hologram where Tony read over the address. The first was an address that Tony didn’t recognise and had the name Richard Parker attached to it. The second was to the apartment where Peter had been living, Ben’s name attached to it. From what Tony could gather, Ben had been the secondary person on the lease.

“What happened to the storage unit when Ben passed?” Tony asked.

“It appears that the unit is a yearly rental,” FRIDAY said. “The year is not up yet and so the unit is still active.”

“Has anyone been to the unit since Ben passed?” Tony asked.

There was a pause from FRIDAY. “It appears that the last person to visit the storage unit was Ben Parker.”

Tony nodded. Good. “I want to go check out this storage unit ASAP. Mark some time on Monday. I’ll take a look once I’ve dropped Peter off at school.”

“Of course, Boss,” FRIDAY responded.

Tony sighed and ran a hand down his face. “I really hope you didn’t know, Ben,” he mumbled. “For Peter and May’s sake.”


	6. Part 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :D I cannot get over the overwhelming support that you are giving this story! Thank you so much! You have no idea how much it means to me that you are enjoying it. Love you all so much and I hope you enjoy this next installment :) 
> 
> Apologies for any mistakes!

“Have you got everything for school?” Pepper asked, unscrewing the lid to her travel mug.

“Yep,” Peter nodded, shoving the last of his school books into his backpack.

May had brought his school things over to the Tower on her last visit and it was another action that cemented the fact that their lives had changed. It was both surreal and invigorating. 

“Okay,” Pepper poured coffee into her travel mug. “Do you need anything?”

“I’m good,” Peter assured her. “Thanks.”

“Have a good day at school,” Pepper smiled, twisting the top of the lid back onto her mug. “You can tell me all about it tonight when we get home.”

“Okay,” Peter smiled. “You have a good day too.”

Pepper smiled beautifully. “Thank you. Alright, love you. Bye, Tony. Be good.” And with a quick kiss pressed to Tony’s cheek, she was gone in a click of her heels.

Tony’s heart stuttered at the domestic feel to it all. He pushed himself off the bench he had been leaning against as he watched his wife and son get ready for the day.

“You ready?” Tony asked.

Peter zipped up his backpack and slung it over his shoulders. “Ready.”

A quick trip down the garage and Tony led Peter over to one of the many cars he owned. The Audi flickered to life with a beep as Tony unlocked the car and he slid into the driver’s seat. It took a moment to realise as he settled into the seat that Peter hadn’t joined him. The window whirred as he pushed it down and he leaned across the seat to look at his son.

“You do know how a car works, right?” Tony grinned. “They taught you that in school?”

“This is,” Peter gaped. “This is not just a car!”

“Come on, Kid. We need to get you to school on time or Pepper will never trust me with a school drop off again.”

Peter launched into action and slipped into the car, shutting the door as gently as he could.

“Seatbelt,” Tony ordered.

When Peter clipped his belt in, Tony roared the car to life and off they went.

“This is so much better than taking the subway,” Peter said, trailing his hands over the dashboard of the car.

“I wouldn’t know,” Tony shrugged. He switched the radio on, keeping the volume low. “What time does school let out?”

“Uh, 3:15,” Peter said.

“Right, Happy will be there to pick you up,” Tony said. He wasn’t sure where the storage unit was going to take him, and he didn’t want to leave Peter waiting.

“Oh, uh, Happy doesn’t need to do that,” Peter stuttered. “I was going to hang out with Ned after school and MJ. I need to catch up on everything I missed last week.”

Tony blinked. “Right.”

“Is – is that okay?” Peter toyed with the seatbelt across his chest.

“Sure, Kid,” Tony nodded. “We just – just need to work on our communication. Never been a strong suit of mine. Ask your mum.”

“Sorry,” Peter winced.

“No, not your fault,” Tony waved him off. “This is new to all of us and it will take some time to get into a routine. Right, text Happy Ned’s address and he can pick you up there.”

“Can he pick me up from May’s?” Peter asked. “It’s just, I wanted to grab a few things from the apartment that I left.”

Tony let out a long breath. “Yeah, that’s fine. Let May know.”

Peter had already taken out his phone and was tapping out a text to May. “Done.”

“What’s on for school today?” Tony asked.

Peter shrugged. “The usual, I guess. Ned said that we are working on our History projects today in class.”

* * *

Tony pulled up to the front of Midtown and Peter scrambled to get his backpack. He could already see the lingering students at the front of the school eyeing the expensive car and he felt his cheeks heat up.

“Have a good day. Learn something new. Pay attention, all that jazz,” Tony grinned at him from behind his yellow tinted sunglasses.

“Thanks for the lift,” Peter grinned. “See you late tonight!”

He slipped out of the car, shutting the door behind him and quickly hurried into the school before anyone could stop and ask him why he was being driven to school in a car that he could never afford.

He was in the process of putting his bag in his locker when he felt someone come up behind him.

“You’re not dead,” MJ stated bluntly. “Good. Now I don’t have to replace you with Flash in the Decathlon team.”

“Hey MJ,” Peter whirled around to face her. “Nope, not dead. Just, uh, a bad cold.”

“Right. A cold,” MJ repeated, eyes narrowing. “So, you didn’t hurt yourself swinging around Queens acting as the vigilante known as Spider-Man.”

Peter's mouth dropped open. “What – I – I don’t – I’m not -”

“Don’t hurt yourself trying to deny it,” MJ snorted.

“Hey guys,” Ned joined them. “Dude, did you really get dropped off in an Audi?”

Peter turned wide-eyed to Ned. “How do you know that?”

“I heard a couple of people talking about it.”

Peter groaned and let his head bang against his open locker door. “Great.”

“Since when do you get dropped off in a car?” MJ asked. “Is this a Spider-Man thing?”

“Dude, you told her your Spider-Man?” Ned gently smacked Peter’s arm.

“Shhh,” Peter hissed, looking around but nobody was paying attention to the three of them. “No, I didn’t tell her.”

“Oops,” Ned winced. “My bad. Sorry Peter.”

MJ rolled her eyes. “I already knew he was Spider-Man.”

“You did?” Peter frowned. “Since when?”

“Since you no longer sucked at gym,” MJ shrugged. She looked between the two silent boys who stared at her. “I’m observant, not obsessed. Besides, you two don’t whisper as quietly as you think you do.”

“Oh,” Peter blinked. 

“Why were you really not at school?” MJ asked.

“I found out that Tony and Pepper Stark are my real parents after the fingerprinting we did at school got flagged in an FBI database and learnt that I had been kidnapped as a child,” Peter rambled out in one breath.

MJ blinked twice. “Wow. You know you're still a loser, right?”

“Yeah, I know,” Peter nodded with relief and felt some tension loosen from his shoulders. He knew that MJ wouldn’t have made a big deal out of it but seeing her reaction made him feel a little calmer about the whole situation.

“I’m Peter’s guy in the chair,” Ned puffed his chest out. “You know. Not that it’s a competition.”

“Well, at least you have _some_ backup,” MJ hummed. “Does Stark know about your vigilante kick?”

“No,” Peter shook his head. “At least, not yet.”

MJ smirked. “I can’t wait to draw that crisis.”

Peter groaned again and smacked his head against the locker door again.

* * *

“What number are we looking at FRIDAY?” Tony murmured as he slunk past the rows and rows of metal shutters. 

It had been far too easy to sneak into the storage unit facility, Tony easily hacking past the less than adequate security system that was in place. Saying that the facility looked run-down was paying the place a compliment.

“Unit 52 Boss,” FRIDAY responded.

Tony ducked down another row and came to a stop at the front of number 52. The lock was a simple padlock that Tony broke in no time and then he was lifting up the door. He slipped in underneath and pushed the door down behind him.

“FRIDAY let’s get some light in here,” Tony said.

In an instant the room flickered with light that came from glasses that Tony wore. It looked like a typical storage unit; boxes stacked high on one another, a couch covered in dust and an old bike in the corner. There was nothing that screamed out of the ordinary and Tony huffed.

He moved to the nearest box, flipped the lid off and coughed as a plomb of dust rose up. “Alright, FRIDAY, make sure you scan everything you see.”

“Got it Boss,” FRIDAY said.

Methodically, Tony started moving through the boxes. Most of the boxes contained unimportant things like old cooking pots, clothes that smelled musty and had visible holes in them where moths had gotten to them.

Tony had begun to build up a sweat shifting boxes around in the limited space. He had just finished shifting a large stack when something silver caught his eye. Kicking and shoving the stack of boxes away, he lifted up the heavy blanket that was half concealing a locked filing cabinet.

“What do we have here,” Tony murmured.

He reached out and pulled at the draw and to no surprise found that it was locked. Reaching into his jacket, he pulled out a small black wallet. Unzipping it, he pulled out the necessary tools to pick the lock. Putting the wallet between his teeth, Tony worked the lock until he heard a click and draw slid open at his pull.

“Jackpot,” Tony shoved the tools back into his jacket pocket and began rifling through the draw.

Tony quickly gathered that the files were of research that Richard and Mary had been doing. Some of the notes were typed, others were handwritten scrawls with equations and ideas. As Tony scanned over the files, he saw no marker that this belonged to OSCORP and realised that this was their own personal research. He made a note to go through it properly when he wasn’t standing in a dingy, rat ridden, moth biting storage unit. He flicked through each file until his hands froze and his heartbeat pounded in his chest.

On the tab of the file, Peter Stark was written in black marker.

Tony’s hand’s shook as he pulled the file out and he swallowed the lump in his throat as he opened it up. His eyes were immediately drawn to the image of Peter. His son was three in the picture, his missing two front teeth visible where he grinned at the camera. It was the same picture that had sat atop the piano at their Malibu home before it had been destroyed.

He flipped the picture up and scanned the page in front of him, jaw clenching tighter and tighter at the more he read. It was information all about Peter from his age, weight and height to where he went during the day and who he was left with. A detailed report of Peter’s every move.

Tony growled and slammed the file shut and kicked the filing cabinet. The clang of his shoe hitting the cabinet rang out through the unit but there was a small thunk that didn’t belong. With a frown, Tony flicked through the files again until he reached the back of the draw and found a hand-held tape recorder at the bottom. He picked it up, the small device fitting into his palm and he clicked play.

The unit immediately filled with a voice that Tony recognised – Obadiah Stane.

“Target’s name is Peter Stark, three years old. You will receive 20 million dollars into an offshore account for taking him in. Make sure you keep the boy out of sight for a few months, take a trip, I don’t care. Do what you want with the boy but keep him alive and relatively healthy. There could be use for a future ransom if Stark doesn’t fall into line. Keep the boy until you hear from me again.”

The tape clicked off and Tony breathed deeply through his nose. Anger swirled through his body and the tape creaked under the force of his clenched fist. It was with some grim satisfaction that Tony relished in the thought that Obadiah was dead and that he and Pepper had been the ones to kill him. His teeth clenched together as he realised, he could never punch Richard Parker in the face for accepting 20 million dollars to take his son.

“FRIDAY, call Happy. I want this whole unit packed up and shipped to the Tower before Peter gets home.” Tony growled as he slammed the cabinet shut.

* * *

“Oh good, you’re all here,” Tony said, the words sharp and stilted.

Steve looked up from where he was reading the paper and frowned as he took in Tony’s posture. It was not the relaxed and happy figure the man had been projecting for the last week. It was tense, jarring and Steve could see the underlying anger along the man’s jaw and in his eyes.

“Tony, you okay?” Steve asked, dropping the paper and moving to stand. 

Tony let out a harsh breath through his nose. “Nope. Not okay.”

In his time working with Tony he had seen the man sarcastic, flippant and selfish. Then the battle of New York happened, and Steve saw a different side to Tony, one that he was sure that not many people got to see. It had been a few years since Steve had seen Tony this worked up and he wondered what exactly had wound him up so tightly. 

“What’s going on?” Natasha demanded as she came to stand by Steve.

Bruce and Clint, who were also in the room, moved closer.

“Tony,” Bruce prompted when Tony didn’t respond.

“Right. Well, happy news first I guess,” Tony huffed, scrubbing a hand over his face. “We found Peter.”

Steve froze, feeling the room do so too, as he stared at Tony. It was after the battle of New York when Steve had found out about Peter. They had been eating Shawarma together, all silent with exhaustion as they processed what they had just done. Then out of nowhere, Tony had said he hoped Peter, wherever he was, was safe. While most of the team had been aware that Peter had been kidnapped, Steve had no idea. He had learnt a lot about Tony that night. From that night on, the team made a silent pact to help find Peter and bring him home. While the team had continued to grow, they never stopped looking for Pete but even they hadn’t been able to find him. 

“You found Peter?” Steve repeated.

“Yep,” Tony nodded, a small, quick grin lifting his lips.

“Is he okay?” Natasha dared to ask the question they were all dreading.

“Yeah,” Tony breathed out. “Yeah, he’s fine. He’s healthy and un-traumatized.”

“When did you find out?” Bruce asked, moving to clap Tony on the back, a grin on his face.

“Last week,” Tony said. “He got fingerprinted at school if you can believe it.”

“He’s been here?” Steve asked, eyebrows rising up in surprise.

“Yeah, sorry,” Tony winced. “I – I wanted to keep him to myself for a bit.”

“It’s okay, Tony,” Steve smiled softly. “We understand. We are really happy for you and Pepper.”

“Thanks,” Tony nodded.

“How come we didn’t hear about this in the news?” Clint asked. “Peter returning home is something I expected every media station to be projecting.”

“We’ve been keeping a lid on it,” Tony explained. “It’s complicated. Kid had no idea he had been kidnapped and the kicker is – neither did the Aunt who was taking care of him.”

“Wait – what?” Bruce shook his head. “How did she not know Peter was kidnapped?”

“Obadiah Stane,” Tony spat the name and he brought out what Steve recognised as a tape recorder. He pressed play and Steve sucked in a breath.

“Target’s name is Peter Stark, three years old. You will receive 20 million dollars into an offshore account for taking him in. Make sure you keep the boy out of sight for a few months, take a trip, I don’t care. Do what you want with the boy but keep him alive and relatively healthy. There could be use for a future ransom if Stark doesn’t fall into line. Keep the boy until you hear from me again.”

There was a heavy silence as the recorder clicked off and Steve found that his hands were clenching by his side.

“Who had him?” Clint asked, jaw clenched tightly.

“Richard and Mary Parker,” Tony growled.

“I take it you’ve already had them … detained,” Natasha asked.

“No need, unfortunately,” Tony huffed. “They died in a plane crash when Peter was six. He went to live with who he thought was his Aunt and Uncle who had no idea that he was actually mine.”

“You’re joking?” Steve frowned.

“I wish I was,” Tony sighed, rubbing a hand through his hair. “It’s probably why we had such a hard time trying to find him. We got lucky with his fingerprints.”

“That’s unbelievable,” Bruce shook his head. “They really had no idea?”

“No. Ben Parker passed away six months ago,” Tony said. “and it’s unclear if he knew or not but May had no idea. She’s actually been really good about the whole thing.”

“You think Ben knew?” Natasha asked.

“I found a storage unit with Ben’s name on it, where I found this lovely gem,” Tony waved the recorder. “I’ve got Happy bringing everything to the Tower as we speak. I want us to go over it. I think it goes without saying that I don’t want Peter knowing about this.” He glared around at the team.

“We will keep it quiet,” Steve promised.

“Please do,” Tony said. “Kid really liked Ben and he really loves May.”

“Understood,” Natasha nodded. “Don’t worry Tony. We’ll get to the bottom of it.”

“Thanks,” Tony nodded.

“Do we get to meet Peter?” Steve asked, looking hopeful.

“Kid would love that,” Tony finally smiled. “He’s a big fan. Choked on a pancake when he met Rhodey.”

Clint snorted. “So, he’s graceful?”

“He’s a genius,” Tony boasted.

“I’m sure he is,” Steve chuckled.

“No, seriously,” Tony said “Kid is an actual genius. He goes to Midtown School of Science and Technology. Got himself a full scholarship and is top of his class. He could be going to college if he wanted to.”

“Can’t say that’s surprising,” Bruce smiled. “Not with you and Pepper as his parents.”

“Now I really want to meet him,” Natasha smirked. “I want to see him out science the great Tony Stark.”

Tony spluttered and Steve couldn’t help but laugh. Steve had seen a lot in his time, but he had to say that seeing Tony being reunited with his son was probably the greatest thing he had ever seen.

* * *

Peter couldn’t help the giddy grin on his face as he swung around Queens. It felt so good to be back in his Spider-Man gear. Though he wished that he had the suit that Tony was designing, he was still immensely happy to be out patrolling again. He felt a little guilty about lying to Tony about spending the afternoon with Ned and MJ. He had managed to catch up on what he missed during lunch time but when the bell rang, he waved his friends goodbye and ducked into the nearest alleyway to change. Already he had helped a lady load her groceries into her car, stopped someone from stealing a bike and rescued a baby bird that had fallen from a tree.

All in all, it was a great patrol.

Until he was swinging over a building when he Spider-Senses started growing crazy. He looked up just in time to see an arrow pass through his web, snapping it and he was falling out of the sky. Peter yelped, landing on top of a building with a thump and went skidding across the tough surface, even managing to flip over a couple of times. He came to a stop when he slammed into the building edge and he groaned.

“Who the hell is shooting arrows in Queens?” Peter moaned.

He didn’t get a response, but he pulled himself up, wincing as he felt his body ache. He was in the process of dusting himself off when his senses went off again and he heard a grunt. His eyes widened as he watched Captain America leap up over the edge of the building and land lightly on the roof.

The superhero straightened, locking eyes on Peter. “Spider-Man,” Captain America nodded.

“Cap – Captain,” Peter stammered, awkwardly saluting. “Big fan. Nice to meet you.”

Peter knew that he was going to run into the Avengers at some point, but he really wasn’t expecting them on his first patrol back. He swallowed, looking nervously to the skies for the Iron Man suit. He couldn’t see it, but he did see Hawkeye perched on a building not too far from his, another arrow locked on to him. That explained who shot him down.

He really wished he had taken up Ned’s offer to rehearse his first meeting with the Avengers.

“Nice costume,” Steve said.

Peter felt his cheeks flush under the mask, and he crossed his arms over his chest. “I’m on a budget.” He purposely lowered his voice so that Tony wouldn’t recognise him. He knew that just because he couldn’t see him, didn’t mean that he wasn’t around. “Did you come here just to insult my outfit?”

Ned was never going to believe that he had just _sassed_ _Captain America_! If he managed to make it out of this to tell Ned about it. He wondered if MJ would be impressed.

“No,” Steve said. “We need to talk.”

“About what?” Peter asked, though he already knew the answer.

“About you and what you have been doing,” Steve said casually. “You are gaining a lot of attention.”

Peter shifted. “I’m not hurting anyone,” he blurted out.

_Be cool, be cool, be cool_ , he scolded himself.

“Yet,” Steve said. “Come back with me to the Avengers Tower. We can talk properly there.”

“No thank you,” Peter said. There was no way he could go back to the Tower without Tony finding out exactly who he was, and he was not ready to open that can of worms just yet.

“No?” Steve repeated. Slowly, his legs shifted apart, shifting his weight as he subtly moved into a defensive position.

“ _Get ready to move,_ ” said a tinny female voice.

“ _Great, just what this day needed_ ,” Tony’s voice came out smaller and Peter realised it was from the Captains comm he was wearing. “ _A chase through Queens_. _Try not to spook him._ ”

“ _Got him locked, Cap.”_

“Uh, yeah. I appreciate you coming all the way out to Queens,” Peter said. “But I’m afraid I can’t come with you to the tower today.”

“Why?” Steve asked.

“Why what?” Peter frowned.

“Why can’t you come to the tower to talk,” Steve asked.

“I’ve got crime to stop,” Peter shrugged. “People to help. Busy schedule. Maybe we could do this another day?”

“I’m afraid we can’t,” Steve said. “You need to come with me.”

“Sorry Cap, no means no,” Peter said. “Any other day but not today.”

“I wasn’t really offering,” Steve said.

Peter heard the whistle of the arrow through the air and without taking his eyes off Steve, he snatched it out of mid-air. He looked at the arrow and frowned when he saw it wasn’t a regular arrow. There was something on the end, something that looked like a capsule. On the inside was a yellow coloured liquid and a small needled stuck out at the end.

“ _He caught my arrow_ ,” Hawkeye said with disbelief. “ _He didn’t even look_.”

“ _I’m moving in_ ,” Tony said, and Peter could hear the sound of Iron Man’s repulsors in the distance.

“Is this – is this a drug?” Peter asked, waving the arrow at Steve. “Did you just try to drug me?”

“Take it easy,” Steve said. “It was just a precaution.”

“You said you just wanted to talk,” Peter said hotly.

“We do,” Steve said.

“This isn’t talking!” Peter snapped. He could hear his dad getting closer. “You – you tried to drug me.”

“You’re an enhanced individual,” Steve said quickly. “We need to talk to you and this was just a –“

“Precaution,” Peter huffed. “You had every intention of taking me to the tower whether I said yes or no, didn’t you? What if I didn’t want to talk? What then?”

“Spider-Man –“

Peter didn’t let him finish. He threw his arm out, fingers hitting the trigger of his web shooter. The web flew out, wrapping around Steve's legs. Peter yanked on them hard, sending the Captain falling to the ground. Before he even hit the roof, Peter was running. He sprinted past Steve who was already getting to his feet and dodged another arrow that came flying his way.

His senses went off and Peter turned, raising his hand just in time to catch the shield that was heading directly towards him. He caught it easily, feeling a brief satisfaction at the surprise look on Steve’s face.

“You can have this back when you learn to play nicely,” Peter patted the shield and then leapt off the side of the building.

“ _Nat, he’s heading your way_ ,” he heard Steve say.

Peter leapt to the side of the building, quickly webbing the shield to his back and he crawled along the side of the building.

“ _Got him_ ,” Natasha said. “ _Stark, I’m flushing him out to you._ ”

“Nope,” Peter muttered to himself. Peter launched himself off the side of the building, throwing a web out and catching another side of the building. He swung himself down an alleyway, catching himself on the back end of a building before jumping to another.

“ _I’ve lost sight of him,_ ” Natasha’s voice sounded distant now. “ _Stark?_ ”

“ _Hold on_ ,” Stark said.

In a panic, Peter let himself slide down the edge of a building, straight into an open dumpster and with a web he pulled the lid close. The dumpster stunk and Peter clapped a hand over his mouth and nose in an attempt to block it. He froze as he could hear the Iron Man suit flying around. He didn’t dare move, the captain's shield digging into his back.

_Oh god_ , Peter thought. _I stole Captain America’s shield_.

Eventually the sound of Iron Man disappeared but Peter didn’t leave the dumpster until an hour had passed. Hesitantly he opened the dumpster and peered out. There was no one there so he leapt out and breathed in the fresh air.

He made his way back to the apartment carefully, making sure not to take a direct route. Anger swirled inside his gut. Tony had lied to him. He had assured Peter that they had only wanted to talk to Spider-Man, but they had seemed pretty intent on bringing him into the tower. That did not seem like _just talking_ to Peter. As the shield of his back shifted, Peter felt some smug satisfaction.

As he replayed the moment over and over in his mind, the satisfaction had worn off by the time he crawled up the apartment building and into his bedroom via the window and instead left a lingering sadness. Though he should have felt pleased that the Avengers thought him strong enough that they needed to drug him, he felt sad by the fact that they viewed him as a threat when all he had wanted to do was to help the little guy.

By the time he had made it home he had just enough time to shower (using half a bottle of shampoo on his hair) and double bagged his suit and stashed it in the bottom of his backpack before Happy arrived. He hid the shield under his bed, making a mental note to pick it up another day and slid into the back seat of the car.

“Hey Happy,” Peter greeted, buckling himself in.

“Hey kid,” Happy nodded. “You have a good day?”

Peter shrugged. “It was alright. Nice to be back at school.”

“You catch up on all your work?” Happy asked, glancing at him through the rear-view mirror.

“Yep,” Peter nodded. “All caught up. MJ and Ned were really cool and helped me with everything this afternoon.” Something bitter filled his mouth as he lied. “Uh- how was your day?”

“It was fine,” Happy said.

“What did you do?” Peter asked in an attempt to distract himself. “What does the head of security do, exactly? How did you become head of security? When did you start working for Mr – uh, Tony?”

Peter watched as Happy rolled his eyes in the mirror but was pleased when the man answered his questions (even if they were reluctant). Peter kept up a steady stream over conversation, pushing his earlier confrontation with the Avengers out his mind. When they got to the tower, Happy rode with Peter in the elevator up to their personal floor.

“Hey kid,” Ton greeted as Peter entered the kitchen with Happy. “How was school?”

Peter shrugged; some linger anger flaring up again. “S’ fine.”

“Good, good,” Tony said.

Peter felt his eyes on him as he moved to the fridge and grabbed himself a bottle of water and then moved to the cupboard to pull out a bag of chips.

“Did Ned and MJ help you catch up this afternoon?” Tony asked.

“Yep,” Peter backed out of the kitchen. “I have homework, I’ll be in my room.” And then he spun on his heel and disappeared down the hall to his room, feeling Tony’s eyes on him the whole way.

* * *

“That was weird, right?” Tony asked, turning to Happy.

Happy shrugged. “Teenagers are weird.”

Tony frowned. “Did he say anything in the car? Did something happen at school?”

“He said school was good,” Happy said. He peered at Tony carefully. “Are you okay? You seem wired up.”

Tony waved Happy concern off. “Had a run in with Spider-Man.”

“He talked to you?” Happy asked.

“He stole Cap’s shield,” Tony said ruefully. “I don’t blame him though. It was a shit show.”

“What happened?” Happy asked.

“You know I promised Peter we would just talk to him,” Tony sighed. “That’s all I wanted but then Bird-Brain had to go and get a little trigger happy. Spidey declined to come in and talk to us today so Cap gave the order to dose him.”

Happy eyebrows flew up. “You drugged Spider-Man?”

“Not even close,” Tony said. “He caught the arrow without even looking. It was impressive. Then he took Cap’s shield and said he could have it when he learnt to play nice. Then he just vanished like spiders do.”

* * *

Peter smiled to himself as he listened to Tony and Happy speak. He hadn’t meant to eavesdrop, but he was glad he stopped when he heard Tony speak. The anger fled his body as he listened to Tony say that he had only wanted to talk. Hearing Happy and Tony move, Peter hurried to his room, feeling a lot better about his afternoon and made a metal note to return the Captain’s shield sooner than he originally planned.


	7. Part 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :D Hello! 
> 
> Once again I am simply blown away with the response that this story is getting! You are all such wonderful readers and I can't thank you enough for the love that you have given it! I am having such a good time writing it and it makes me so happy to hear that you are enjoying reading it. 
> 
> For those who don't read the tags: THIS CHAPTER WILL CONTAIN VOMITING. It's nothing graphic but it is mentioned so if you are a skirmish reader, please be advised. 
> 
> My apologies for any mistakes and I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Peter waited three days to return the shield. He delivered it to the tower during one of his patrols, swinging onto the tower and climbed all the way up to the top to the upper balcony he knew belonged to the Avengers. With a grin behind the mask that nobody could see, he strung up the shield with his webs so that it was in clear sight and just out of reach.

He had swung back to Queens, patrolled for another half an hour before making his way back to May’s apartment. He finished up his homework when May came home, looking tired but pleased to see him there. They had planned for Peter to go to May’s after school as Pepper and Tony were bother required in a meeting that Happy would be taking them too. Not wanting Peter to travel alone, they made a plan that Peter would wait for May to finish her shift and then the two of them would come to the Tower for dinner.

“FRIDAY? Where is everyone?” Peter asked as they entered the quiet floor.

“Bosses are currently on route back to the tower,” FRIDAY responded.

“That will never be normal to me,” May said, eyes directed to the roof. She followed Peter into the living and cocked her head as she looked out the window. “Is that normal?”

Peter followed her gaze and was surprised to see that the shield was still hanging there. “No, that’s not normal.”

Peter realised that the Avengers must be out if they hadn’t already gotten the shield down. He grinned, pleased that he would be able to see their reactions. While he hadn’t yet met the Avenger’s as Peter yet, Tony had promised that this weekend he would make the introductions. 

May was in the middle of making up a cheese platter while Peter relaxed on the couch when the elevator doors slid open and Pepper and Tony stepped out.

“Hey sweetie,” Pepper beamed at Peter who waved back in response. “Hi May. How was your day?”

While May fell into conversation with Pepper, Tony had slipped his jacket off and had tossed it over the back of a chair and made his way over to Peter who was watching an episode of _Brooklyn 99_.

“Hey kiddo,” Tony greeted. “How was school?”

“I got an A on my calculus test,” Peter grinned.

“Good work,” Tony praised.

“Does this mean I can help work on the Spider-Man suit again?” Peter asked, looking hopeful. Since Peter’s run in with the Avengers, he hadn’t seen Tony work on the Spider-Man suit and we had asked, Tony had distracted him with ideas about nanotech.

“Not sure Spider-Man is getting the suit,” Tony grumbled. “Cap’s a little ticked off with him.”

“How come?” Peter asked, trying hard to stop smiling.

“The Spiderling took something of his,” Tony said evasively. “They don’t want me working on anything for Spider-Man until he gets it back. Don’t tell Cap but I think he had it coming.”

“You didn’t _just_ talk to Spider-Man, did you?” Peter ‘guessed’.

Tony sat down next to Peter with a sigh. “No.”

Peter blinked at the honesty, expecting his dad to deny it. “What happened?”

“We did go out with the intention to just talk,” Tony explained. “At least, I know I did. I don’t think Cap was quite expecting Spidey to say no.”

“Why didn’t you respect that?” Peter asked with a frown.

“Spider-Man, as much good as he’s doing, is enhanced,” Tony said. “and as far as we can tell he’s alone. It would be better if he had us in his corner.”

“You think that he could turn bad?” Peter tried not to feel offended, but it was hard. He thought he had been doing a lot of good for Queens and wasn’t sure what he had done to make it seem that he wasn’t.

“Maybe,” Tony hedged, and Peter could see he was trying not to hurt his love of Spider-Man. “Or he could start thinking that the law isn’t doing enough and take it into his own hands.”

Peter shivered, feeling sick at the very thought. He could never do that. “I don’t think he would.”

Tony shrugged. “We don’t know that, which is why we want him to come with us. So we can keep an eye on him, help him when it starts to get too much. Even superheroes have their bad days. We want to be his support system.”

Reluctantly Peter could see where Tony was coming from but that didn’t mean he liked how they went about it. “But Spider-Man took something from Mr America.”

“Yeah,” Tony snorted. “I think Cap pushed a little too hard and well, he made a call that probably set us back a lot with Spidey.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Peter finally grinned.

Tony’s eyes narrowed. “Oh yeah, why do you say that?”

Peter pointed at the window. He laughed as Tony yelped, leaping off the couch to get closer to the window. Peter followed with a bounce in his step.

“That little shit,” Tony half laughed, half huffed. “How long has that been there FRIDAY?”

“Approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes,” FRIDAY responded.

“You may want to get that down soon,” Peter warned. At Tony’s questioning look Peter hastily said, “Ned and I reckon that Spider-Man’s webs only last for a couple of hours before they dissolve.”

“Please tell me you and Ned haven’t gone around Queen’s collecting Spider-Man’s webs and experimenting with them.” Tony frowned.

“Nooooo, no we haven’t done that,” Peter lied. Was it a lie? Technically he had made them so did that count as experimenting on them?

“Just,” Tony sighed. “Don’t look for his webs, please.”

“Okay,” Peter agreed.

“FRIDAY, prepare my suit,” Tony turned away from the window. “And bring up the external cameras. I want to see how the little Webslinger got up so high.”

* * *

“Captain Rogers, Boss is requesting you on his floor,” FRIDAY said as soon as Steve had entered the elevator. “I will take you there now.”

“Okay. Thank you,” Steve said, ignoring the snort from Sam.

“Maybe we finally get to meet the kid,” Natasha said as she leaned against the elevator wall. 

“I thought Stark wanted to do that when we were all here on the weekend?” Sam said. “You know, make a big show of it.”

“Maybe we should just find out,” Steve suggested, looking over his shoulder to his two friends.

“Spoil sport,” Sam muttered.

When the elevator doors opened, Steve stepped out onto Tony’s personal floor. He nodded at Pepper who sat at the kitchen bench, glass of wine in hand with another woman who he didn’t recognise. Steve assumed that this was May Parker.

“Ladies,” Steve nodded. “FRIDAY brought us here.”

“Tony has something for you,” Pepper smirked as she gestured to the living room.

“That I do,” Tony’s voice came from the left and Steve turned to see him in the living room.

He blinked at the scene. Tony was standing behind the couch, phone brought up and pointed in the direction of a teenager who stood on the coffee table, holding Steve’s shield. He did several poses with the shield before he rocked backwards and forwards on the balls of his feet.

“Did you get it?” the teenager asked, his excitement almost tangible.

“Got it, Pete,” Tony held out the phone. “Here, swap.”

Peter held out the shield for Tony and took the phone, already looking at the pictures that Tony had taken.

“Awesome,” Peter grinned. “Ned’s going to flip.”

“Here you go Cap,” Tony smirked. “Better take it before Peter tries to smuggle it to school for his friend, Ted.”

Peter squawked. “I would not! I wouldn’t Captain America Mr Rogers Sir!”

“That was a mouthful,” Tony snorted.

“You must be the famous Peter,” Steve smiled. “It’s nice to meet you. Tony’s been bragging about you since you came home.”

Peter cheeks flushed an adorable red and jumped off the coffee table. “Nice to meet you too, Captain America Mr Rogers Sir.”

“Steve is fine,” Steve chuckled. “Where did you get my shield?”

“Ah, Spidey left it for you,” Tony handed over the shield. “Best keep a tighter grip next time Cap or he may not be so generous next time.”

“He brought it back?” Steve asked, surprised. He half expected to have to walk Queens to find his shield; he didn’t expect Spider-Man to bring it to his doorstep.

“Left it hanging on the balcony,” Tony sniffed. “I had to suit up to get it. You’re welcome, by the way.”

“Thanks Tony,” Steve nodded.

“You should thank Spider-Man,” Peter piped up, looking both horrified and embarrassed that he had spoken. “And apologise.”

Tony clapped his son on the shoulder, giving it a squeeze. “I’ll make sure we _all_ do. Promise.”

Peter nodded, relaxing under Tony’s grip. He seemed to have spotted Natasha and Sam behind because his mouth dropped open and his eyes widened. “Whoa, Black Widow and Falcon.” He brought his phone up and Steve heard the snick of the camera going off. “Wicked.”

“That had better not end up on the internet, kid,” Natasha warned, a dangerous smirk gracing her lips. 

“Black Widow just threatened me,” Peter looked absolutely delighted by the idea.

“Is he serious?” Sam muttered.

“Hey, no threatening my kid,” Tony glared at them. “Or I’lllet Spider-Man steal your things too. You,” Tony squeezed Peter’s shoulder. “Go tell mum about the A you got on your test.”

“Okay,” Peter bounded away. “Nice to meet you guys.”

Steve caught the fond smile that Tony had as he watched his son join Pepper and May in the kitchen, already talking a mile a minute.

“He’s a good kid,” Steve said softly. “Looks a lot like you.”

“Should we be concerned that there is a mini you running around out there?” Sam smirked.

“Don’t corrupt him,” Tony warned.

“We won’t,” Natasha soothed but her smile said differently.

“Right, never leaving him in a room with you,” Tony said deadpanned.

“Was Peter here when Spider-Man dropped this off?” Steve frowned. Something protective swelled up in his chest as he looked to the teenager in the kitchen.

“No, said he came home to it strung up,” Tony said. “I checked the external cameras. Looks like he swung up from another building and then did his creepy crawling thing up the side of the tower. Still not sure if that’s an adhesive he’s got on his gloves or what it is.”

“We’ll figure it out,” Steve relaxed. “Next time we’ll be ready.”

“About that,” Tony shifted his weight. “We have to apologize.”

Sam started to laugh. “He stole the Cap’s shield and we have to apologize?”

“Is this because Peter is a fan of Spider-Man?” Natasha asked, head cocked to one side.

“Yes and no,” Tony said. “Though Peter is right. We came at him too strong.”

“He’s an enhanced individual,” Steve said. “He can’t be left alone to his own devices.”

“He technically hasn’t done anything wrong yet,” Tony cut Steve off. “Look, I agree that it's dangerous to let the Spider-Guy continue on his own. But we shouldn’t have tried to dose him straight away.”

“He wouldn’t come with us to talk,” Steve frowned.

“He did say he was busy,” Natasha shrugged. “Maybe he really couldn’t come with us that day. Perhaps he knew something we didn’t.”

“Let’s just see if Spider-Man will give us another chance,” Steve said. “We will apologize and offer again. But if he turns us down again, we bring him in ourselves. Agreed?”

“Agreed,” Tony said.

* * *

Through all the changes that had happened in the past few weeks ( _had it really been nearly a month already?),_ Peter thought he was managing to lock down a routine fairly well. He was managing to make time to go patrolling without anyone finding out his identity while also avoiding the Avengers. Then he was working on the Spider-Man suit without giving away that he knew more than he was letting on.

It didn’t occur to him that he should have also been keeping an eye out on his other identity; Peter Stark.

It was halfway through decathlon practice when the hair on his arms raised and he got the distinct feeling that something wasn’t right. He jerked in his seat, posture straightening as he looked around the empty hall where they had been practising.

“Dude? Are you okay?” Ned whispered.

“Yeah,” Peter nodded distractedly as he looked around the hall, but he didn’t spot anything. “m’ fine.” 

There was nothing there that was setting off his senses and so he reluctantly settled back down in his chair but nothing he did could disperse the feeling that something was wrong. He spent the rest of the practice half listening to MJ while he rubbed the goose bumps from his arm. Finally, MJ dismissed them, and the team moved to collect their things.

“MJ’s going to kill you,” Ned said. “You weren’t paying attention at all.”

“I know,” Peter swung the backpack onto his shoulders. “I just can’t stop this feeling.”

“What feeling?” MJ appeared by his side.

“How do you just appear out of nowhere?” Peter asked, glancing around as if something would magically tell him the answer.

“What is going on with you?” MJ ignored his question.

“Nothing,” Peter sighed. “Just, my stupid powers are going off and I don’t know why.”

The three of them fell into step as they headed out of the hall and towards the exit.

“Can you break it?” Ned asked, looking thoughtful. “Like, your spider-sense, can you break it like you could a bone?”

“I don’t think so,” Peter frowned.

“Penis Parker’s brain is already broken,” Flash snorted, shoving at Peter’s head from behind.

Peter dodged it and turned to glare at Flash. “Come on man.”

“I’m going to take your place,” Flash warned, elbowing past Peter and strode to the front doors of the school. “Just FYI, loser. You’ll be the alternate soon enough.”

Flashed pushed them open and Peter ran into him as he just stopped dead.

“What the hell?” Flash murmured.

A large crowd was gathered at the base of the steps and they all turned to look at them as they exited the school. Peter’s senses went haywire and before he had a chance to pull Flash back, the crowd was converging and surrounding them, camera flashes going off in an instant.

“Peter Stark! Peter Stark!”

“How does it feel to be home with your parents?”

“Are you going to inherit Stark Industries?”

“What was it like being kidnapped?”

“How long have known your real parents?”

“How do we know this isn’t an attempt to get to Stark’s money?”

“Has a DNA test been performed?”

Flash after flash of camera lights went off in every direction as Peter whipped his head from left to right. Microphones were shoved towards him, the yells blending into one another as each reporter tried to out yell one another, desperate to get their question answered. Peter’s sense continued to go off, screaming at him to move but Peter couldn’t. Black and white spots were dancing in front of his eyes as rapid flashing light went off and he cringed.

“Are you his friends?”

“How long have you known, Peter?”

“Did you know that he was a Stark?”

“How has Peter finding out his real parents affected him?”

“What the fuck?” Flash yelped, stumbling backwards into Peter. “Who the hell are these people?”

Peter clamped his hands over his ears at the voices rung in his ears. No matter how tightly he pressed, he could still hear them yelling at him.

“We have to move,” Ned’s voice was too loud in his ear.

“How,” MJ growled. “We’re surrounded. Hey! Fuck off! Leave him alone. For God’s sake Flash, help!”

Peter felt hands all over his back and he whimpered before he was being shoved forward. The voices grew louder and more frantic but the hands on him were insistent and he stumbled forward.

“Run! Idiot, move,” MJ growled.

Peter ran.

His feet hit the pavement as he leapt down the front steps and onto the sidewalk. He felt someone snag his jacket and direct him to the left and they were running again. He had enough sense to realise that he wasn’t alone, and he would have registered his shock to see Flash pulling him along if his senses weren’t trying to kill him. He could still hear the shouts and heavy footsteps behind them as the reporters chased after them.

“Where do we go?” Ned panted heavily.

“Lose them in the subway!” Flash yelled.

Peter let himself be manhandled as they pushed him towards the subway. He couldn’t see much as the light burned his eyes, whimpering as they got closer and the sound of an incoming train grated on his nerves. He could feel the vibrations in his teeth, and he moaned.

“Don’t you dare throw up on me,” Flash huffed, hauling him up the stairs with MJ on his other side, Ned pushing at his back as they raced upwards.

Peter hunched over as he was shoved into a chair, cradling his splitting head in his hands.

_Too much, too much, too much_ , Peter thought desperately and even that hurt.

“Come on,” Ned breathed, tapping the edge of the seat in a rapid beat. “Close, close, close.”

Peter heard the hiss of the door closing and then the train was lurching forward, the sound of metal on metal, grounding against each other. The train picked up speed and Peter moaned, clutching his hair tightly. He could hear the rapid beating of his friends and Flash’s heartbeats and could almost taste the heavy relief as they sighed.

“What the hell was that?” Flash demanded; voice too loud and too hysteric. “Why were there reporters? And why the hell were they calling Penis Stark?”

“Because he is a Stark,” Ned said. “He’s their kid that got kidnapped.”

“Bullshit,” Flash said.

Peter moaned miserably. He pressed his head tighter into his palms, hoping to relieve some of the pressure that was pulsing through his head. It didn’t and he swallowed the saliva that was filling his mouth.

“No way is Parker actually Tony Stark’s son,” Flash said. “That’s not possible.”

“It is,” Peter gurgled around a mouth full of saliva.

“Bullshit,” Flash repeated.

“Peter, are you okay?” Ned asked, a hand landed too hard on his back.

“S’ loud, too much,” Peter whined. 

“Oh, is it code eleven?” Ned asked.

Peter nodded weakly.

When Ned had first found out about Peter being Spider-Man, the two of them had spent several afternoon’s testing his ability. On one trial, they found out that certain loud noises could trigger a sensory overload and Peter had spent the afternoon with his head in the toilet, miserable. They since then came up with a code eleven whenever Peter went into sensory overload.

He felt Ned shift beside him, and the zipper of a bag being opened. Then Ned was sliding a pair of noise cancelling headphones over his head. Peter moved his hands away from his ears and before pressing them over his ears. It helped and some of the tension released from his body.

“Thanks Ned,” Peter whispered.

“What’s code eleven?” Flash asked.

“Migraine,” Ned re-zipped his bag. “What do we do now?”

“If they found Peter at school then they probably know that he’s been living at the tower,” MJ said. “And where his Aunt lives. Chances are they will be waiting there.”

“We should find somewhere quiet,” Flash said.

Peter blinked hazily at Flash.

“What?” He huffed. “Unlike you, I’m not an idiot. And I want off this train. It’s disgusting.”

Peter agreed with getting off the train. “Next stop we get off.”

When the train came to a stop in the station, MJ and Flash peered out to make sure there were no reporters. Seeing none, they stepped out and Ned took Peter’s arm and led him onto the platform.

They blended with the existing crowd and Peter was glad for the steady grip Ned had on him. Though the headphones were helping a little, it was still too bright for Peter and his head ached with pulsing pain.

“I can’t believe your Peter Stark,” Flash shook his head as they hit the sidewalk.

“Me either,” Peter murmured, nearly tripping over his feet.

Peter kept his head low as he followed MJ through the streets until she was leading them down an alleyway that had Peter gagging at the smell. She rounded the corner and to Peter’s surprise the smell of garbage was replaced by the sweet scent of plants. Peter raised his head enough to see that they seemed to have entered some sort of secret garden. Nestled among a jungle of plants was some benches that MJ led them too.

“What the hell is this place?” Flash asked, gazing around with undisguised awe.

“At night this second-hand bookstore turns into a secret bar,” MJ explained.

“How do you know that?” Ned asked.

“I come for the books, my brother comes for the bar,” MJ shrugged. 

Peter collapsed onto one of the benches and whined low in his throat, burying his face back into his hands.

“Holy shit,” Flash exclaimed. “It’s already on the news. Look.”

Peter whimpered as he looked up and he squinted at the screen of Flash’s phone. His vision swam, the light too harsh but he swallowed around the nausea that rose up in him. The screen flickered with movement and Peter watched himself, MJ, Ned and Flash push their way through the reporters before they were running off. The camera wobbled as the reporter chased after them and it soon caught them again racing down the street.

The camera stayed on them all the way to the subway and even as the train pulled away.

“These are the first glimpses of Peter Stark who has finally returned home,” the reporter was saying, voice slightly dulled by the headphones Peter wore. “Peter, who was kidnapped at the age of three, found out a few weeks ago who his true parents were.”

Peter’s stomach churned and he twisted, stumbling from the bench and leaned over one the potted plants and vomited.

“Ugh, gross Parker,” Flash said.

Peter spat and wiped his mouth on his sleeve. He closed his eyes, breathing deeply. When he was sure he would throw up again he pried open his eyes just enough to stumble back to the seat.

“Where’s your phone,” MJ asked.

“Bag,” Peter managed to get out.

He felt hands on his shoulders, and he lifted his arms just enough to let MJ slide his backpack off him before he was slumping over once again.

“You call Ned,” MJ said. “You’ve met Mr Stark.”

Peter could hear the phone already buzzing before Ned had the chance to even dial and gritted his teeth as it sent a sharp pain through his temple.

“Peter! Thank God, are you okay?” Tony’s frantic voice came cut through Peter’s headphones and he heaved himself back to his feet so he could stumble to the pot plant again to puke. 

“Mr Stark, it’s Ned. Peter’s okay, before you ask.”

“Ned, where is Peter?” Toy demanded.

“He’s with me,” Ned said. “He can’t talk right now. He’s throwing up in a pot plant.”

“What!?” Tony spluttered. “Jesus – alright I’m already tracking Peter’s phone. We didn’t know the media had found out until it was too late.”

“We figured,” Ned said.

“Listen, I’m sending Rhodey to get you. I assume you are still with the girl and the other kid?”

“Yeah, MJ and Flash,” Ned said.

“Right,” Tony said. “Listen, Pep and I are stuck at the tower. We can’t go anywhere without the media following us so Rhodey is already heading your way so just sit tight.”

“Okay, sure,” Ned said.

“Can you put Peter on,” Tony said.

Peter wiped his mouth again and blinked tearfully at Ned who held out his phone. With gentle hands, Ned gently pulled back one of the earphones and Peter held the phone limply in his hand.

“Dad,” Peter croaked out.

He heard Tony’s sharp intake of breath and he blinked as he realised that this was the first time he had called Tony dad.

“Rhodey’s coming, Pete,” Tony said, voice too loud in Peter’s ear. “I’m so sorry, kid. I’m so sorry.”

“S’not your fault,” Peter croaked out and then the black spots grew too much and Peter passed out.


	8. Part 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :D 
> 
> Guys! You are spoiling me with all the love that you are giving this story! I am so thankful for all those who review and leave a like! You are all amazing and wonderful and are what keep this story alive! Thank you so much for everything! 
> 
> I hope that you enjoy this chapter and I apologize for any mistakes.

“Peter? Peter?” Tony snapped as he heard the phone clatter to the ground loudly. There was scraping on the other end of the line before it went silent.

“Sorry!” Ned’s voice was back. “Sorry, Peter dropped the phone. I think he out – wait no he is waking up again. Flash, help him sit up.”

“Why is he sick?” Tony demanded, his heart beating painfully in his chest. He felt cold and sweaty and was itching to get into his suit and fly to Peter. 

They hadn’t caught it in time. Someone had leaked that Peter was back in their care and before they could get a handle on it the media had raced down to Peter’s school, the Tower and even to May’s apartment to get the inside scoop. While Pepper and Tony had been safe in the tower, Happy had been on his way to pick up Peter when Tony had directed him to keep May safe. Pepper had called the school to give them a heads up while he tried to call Peter and get him to stay in the school, but his son had never picked up the phone. Then FRIDAY projected a news report of his kid surrounded and then being pushed through them and taking off running.

As soon as FRIDAY tracked Peter’s location, he sent the coordinates to Rhodey.

He yelped as Pepper took the phone from his hand, giving him a stern look.

“Don’t yell at Ned,” Pepper scolded, switching the phone to speaker. “Ned, hi it’s Pepper.”

“Oh, Hi Mrs. Stark,” Ned said.

“Ned, why is Peter ill?” Pepper asked. “Did something happen at school or did a reporter do anything?”

“It was all the camera’s and the yelling,” Ned explained. “It gave him a really bad migraine. He gets them when loud noises and bright lights trigger it. Wait – hold on.”

“Ned?” Pepper frowned. When there was no response, she shot Tony a worried look. “Ned?”

Tony took back the phone before Pepper’s tight grip could crack the casing. “No yelling, remember.”

He deserved the dirty look she shot him.

“Tony, I’m here,” Rhodey’s voice came over the phone a moment later. 

Both Tony and Pepper let out a huge sigh of relief at their friend’s voice.

“Honey Bear you have no idea how good it is to hear your voice,” Tony croaked out. “How’s Peter?”

“He isn’t looking too hot,” Rhodey said. “I’ve got to get him into the car. Don’t stress, I’ve got him.”

“Just, get him home,” Tony gritted out.

“I will, promise. Hope you’ve got enough to feed four teenagers because I’m bringing the others with me,” Rhodey said.

“Thank you, Rhodey,” Pepper said, a tear rolling down her cheek.

“No worries. I’ll be home soon,” Rhodey said and then the phone line went dead.

“FRIDAY contact Natasha. Get her to find out who told the media about Peter,” Tony growled.

“On it, Boss,” FRIDAY responded.

“Hey,” Pepper’s hands were cupping his face, thumb smoothing over his cheeks. “Breathe. He’s okay. Rhodey’s got him and is bringing him home. Just breathe.”

Tony hadn’t realised that his breathing had quickened. He wrapped his arms around Pepper, pulling her into a tight hug. His heart was beating rapidly in his chest and he took a few measured breathes, matching them to Pepper’s.

“This is a mess,” Tony pulled back, scrubbing a hand down his face once his breathing was back under control. 

“I’ll fix it,” Pepper said “We’ll have to do a press conference now, but no matter. We can bury this before it gets any further.”

Tony felt a small spark of arousal as he watched Pepper go from worried mum to protective mum and badass CEO in a single second. She had that fiery glint in her eye that Tony had fallen in love with and had no doubt that this press conference would not only put every media outlet in their place but also ruin several people’s careers. Pepper Stark was not a mother to be trifled with.

“Just tell me where to stand,” Tony said.

Pepper leaned forward and captured Tony’s lips in a kiss. She kissed him deeply and Tony could feel the worried tension that still lingered. Before he could do something about that, she was pulling away.

“Go get Peter’s room ready for him,” Pepper instructed. “I’ll go prepare some food for our guests. They may be here for a while.”

* * *

Rhodey had seen corpses with better colour than Peter and he checked the rear-view mirror again.

They had managed to get Peter into the car, MJ and Flash sliding in behind him and Ned taking the front seat. Peter had automatically rested his head against the cool window, eyes slipping closed. If it wasn’t for the movement of his chest as he breathed Rhodey would have been worried he was dead.

“Is he dead?” Flash asked, leaning across MJ to poke at Peter.

There was slap and Rhodey smirked to see Flash cradling his hand against his chest.

“I was just checking,” Flash huffed. “He stinks.”

“Like you handled those reporters any better,” MJ scoffed. “You stood there with your mouth hanging open like an idiot. Don’t deny it. We’ve seen the video.”

“It’s already up?” Rhodey asked.

“Yeah,” Ned answered. “Like, maybe 1o minuets after we got ambushed.”

“They didn’t waste any time,” Rhodey muttered. “Pepper’s going to kill them.”

“Where are we going?” Ned asked. “Not that I’m complaining, War Machine sir. I should probably let my parents know.”

“I’m taking you to the Avengers Tower,” Rhodey said. “Congratulations, you landed yourselves in a shit show. Don’t worry, Pepper will contact your parents when you get there, if she hasn’t already.”

“Wicked,” Ned breathed.

“Speaking of the Tower, we are nearly there,” Rhodey said. “I need you to all lean down and get out of sight.”

Rhodey made sure they all complied and winced as Peter moaned pathetically as MJ manoeuvred him across her lap.

“I’m warning you again, Parker. Don’t puke on me,” Flash mumbled.

As they approached, Rhodey could see media crews waiting out the front of the tower, waiting for any type of shot they could get. Before they even reached the view of them, Rhodey was turning down a side street to the closest parking structure. He drove down, as deep as the structure went and pulled up to a dead end where a single keypad stood. Rhodey wound down the window and entered a pin number.

“No way,” Ned breathed, peeking above the dashboard as he watched the concrete wall slide away.

It was a safety feature of The Avenger’s Tower if it were to get compromised. The garage under the Tower had a secret tunnel that led to the closest Parking Structure, making it one of the easier escapes if they ever needed too.

Rhodey smiled smugly and drove through, the concrete wall sliding back into place with a shuddering boom. He drove all the way to the tower's garage and parked the car, switching off the engine.

“Just wait,” Rhodey said, opening the car door. “I want to make sure no reporters snuck down here.”

He closed the door and looked around, but the garage was empty. He wasn’t surprised that Tony and Pepper had locked the Tower down tight. He walked around to Peter’s door and opened it carefully.

“Alright, you can all get out,” Rhodey said as he helped Peter sit up. “Head to the elevator over there but don’t touch it. Peter,” Rhodey tried to keep his voice low but he felt Peter flinch. “I’m sorry, we’re nearly there though.”

“Don’t feel good,” Peter slurred as Rhodey pulled him out of the car.

Peter was lighter than Rhodey expected him to be and he easily draped one of Peter’s arms around his shoulder and the other wrapped around his waist to keep him up.

“Feel free to puke on that Flash kid,” Rhodey muttered. “He seems like a dick.”

Rhodey practically carried Peter to the elevator and ushered them all inside.

“Welcome back, Colonel Rhodes. Boss will be relieved you are here,” FRIDAY said.

“FRIDAY, mute!” Rhodey snapped as Peter wailed, body dropping like lead as his hands came up to press the headphones painfully against his head.

Rhodey wasn’t expecting the movement and dropped Peter to the ground. He crouched down as Peter curled up in a ball and saw tears leaking from his tightly shut eyes.

“Holy shit,” Flash gasped, staring at Peter with wide, frightened eyes. 

“FRIDAY dim the lights,” Rhodey commanded.

The lights dimmed leaving just enough light for them to see.

“Dim the lights on Starks floor too. Alert them to not make any noise when the doors open,” Rhodey continued. He turned to the three pale teenagers. “When the door opens, I want you to go straight. You’ll find the living room easily. I want you to wait there for either me, Pepper or Tony. Understood?”

“Yes sir,” the three teenagers chorused.

Rhodey nodded, fighting the small grin as the teenagers obeyed his command, and hovered over Peter as the elevator rose steadily. It slowed before coming to a stop and the door slid open.

The three teenagers ushered out instantly, doing as Rhodey directed them. He ignored them, instead choosing to focus on Pepper and Tony who hovered anxiously, face’s drawn tight. Bringing a finger to his lips, he motioned for them to not make a noise. Then, he motioned to Tony to help him lift Peter.

Tony nodded, crouching down and gently got his hands under Peter’s legs. He winced as Peter whimpered, body tensing even further. He looked up at his friend who had his hands under Peter’s shoulders.

Rhodey silently mouthed _one two three_ and they lifted Peter. They easily carried him down the hall and to Peter’s bedroom. As they entered, Rhodey was relieved to see that his room was already set up. The sheets were pulled back and the room was practically dark, and a lined bin was on the bedside table along with two tablets and a glass of water. Gently they laid Peter down, Tony gently soothing away the whimper Peter let out.

Together he and Tony gently got Peter’s shoes off and Peter sighed.

Tony gave Rhodey a grim look and then moved to Peter's side. Gently he lifted the headphone off and Peter whined low in his throat.

“Peter. I’m sorry kid but I need you to take something for your head.”

“Won’t work,” Peter whined.

“Please,” Tony said. “Just try.”

Peter whined again but started to pull himself up.

Rhodey helped him sit while Tony grabbed the two pills and the glass of water. When Peter was steady, Tony pressed the pills to Peter’s lips which parted at the touch. Rhodey watched, tense and ready to move in case the boy threw up again. Peter took the pills, swallowed the water that Tony poured into his mouth and then slumped down on the pillows once more.

Tony gently put the headphones back on and smoothed Peter’s sweaty hair back.

“FRIDAY, black this room out,” Tony said as he got to his feet.

Rhodey followed and as soon as they reached the door the room went completely dark and the gently closed the door.

* * *

“FRIDAY, alert me if Peter is in distress,” Tony sighed, scrubbing a hand down his face.

“That does not look like a normal migraine,” Rhodey expelled out a breath.

“No,” Tony closed his eyes briefly before opening them again. “FRIDAY, call Bruce down here. I want him to take a look at Peter. Something isn’t right.”

* * *

Pepper desperately wanted to follow Tony and Rhodey to Peter’s room, but she had to deal with the three teenagers standing still in her living room.

“Are you kids alright?” Pepper asked. “Ned? You okay?”

“I’m fine, Mrs. Stark,” Ned nodded.

“He was telling the truth,” Flash mumbled to himself. “Unbelievable.”

Pepper raised her eyebrows as the girl (who she assumed was MJ that Peter had been telling her about) elbowed Flash in the gut.

“Shut up, Flash,” MJ glared. “Sorry about him. We’re fine, by the way.”

“Oh, yeah,” Flash nodded. “I’m fine. Flash Thompson, it’s an honour to meet you.”

“Flash?” Pepper repeated, sounding skeptical. 

“His real name is Eugene,” Ned offered.

Flash whipped around to Ned and glared at him. “Shut up, loser.”

MJ elbowed Flash again.

“Right, I’m glad you are all okay,” Pepper said. “And I apologise that you have been caught up in all of this. We were planning on doing this gently and give Peter some time to adjust but that’s gone out the window. So, first things first; did any of you tell the media about Peter?”

Ned shook his head almost violently. “What, no! I can keep a secret! I’ve been keeping Peter’s secrets – owe! What did you elbow _me_ for?”

“We didn’t tell anyone,” MJ said, staring Pepper directly in the eye. “Flash didn’t know and none of the other kids at school did either.”

“Truth,” Flash said. “I personally would not do that to Peter.”

MJ and Ned both rolled their eyes.

“Okay, fine. I wouldn’t have believed him, and I would teased him for it,” Flash huffed and then he caught Pepper’s disapproving glare. “You know, all in good fun.”

“Alright,” Pepper finally said. “Someone else had leaked this.”

“You should try the school secretary,” Flash suggested.

Ned and MJ turned to look at Flash, giving a dead stare. 

“What? Everyone knows that she knows everyone’s business,” Flash grumbled. “She’d do anything for extra money. She’s blackmailed me before.”

“What did she have on you?” MJ asked, curious.

Flash’s cheeks flushed. “Nothing.”

“Okay, we will look into that,” Pepper nodded. “Thank you.” She paused and looked over her shoulder when she heard voices.

Tony and Rhodey entered the room, heads bent together and looking more worried than Pepper liked.

“Is he okay?” Pepper asked as they got closer.

“No really,” Tony sighed. “I think something else happened. That’s not a normal migraine. Bruce is on his way down to take a look at him.”

Pepper nodded and when she turned back to the three teenagers she frowned when she saw Ned and MJ looking significantly at each other.

“Something you want to share?” Tony asked, noticing the look as well.

“No,” Ned and MJ said in unison.

Before anyone could respond to their strange behaviour, the elevator door was opening and Bruce Banner was stepping out, gaining the attention and adoration of the three teenagers.

* * *

“No way, it’s Bruce Banner,” Flash yelped, jaw going slack.

“Hey,” Bruce smiled awkwardly, giving a wave to three teen staring at him. “I saw you guys on the news.”

“Awesome,” Ned grinned. “Umm, would it be possible for you to sign my chemistry book?”

“Maybe after I’ve seen Peter,” Bruce suggested with a smile.

“Right,” Ned nodded, trying to play it off like it was no big deal. “That’s cool.”

“Smooth,” MJ nodded at Ned.

“I would have been more confident if I had my hat,” Ned sighed.

“Like a hat could save you from that awkward encounter,” Flash scoffed. “Loser.”

“Right,” Bruce drawled, confused and a little amused by the exchange. “Where is Peter?”

“In his room,” Tony gestured to the hallway with a wave of his hand. “FRIDAY has blacked out the room. He isn’t responding well to light.”

“He’s vomited,” Rhodey said. “We gave him Tylenol for the pain with some water.”

“It doesn’t look like a normal migraine,” Tony warned.

Bruce nodded and gently patted Tony’s arm. “I’ll go take a look at him now. Don’t worry, I’m sure he will be fine.”

“Sensory overload!”

Bruce turned at the sudden outburst. He glanced at Tony before the two of them turned to look at Ned who had shouted. MJ had her hand across her eyes while Flash was looking at Ned like he had never witnessed anything like him before.

“What was that?” Tony asked, taking a step forward.

“It’s sensory overload,” Ned blurted out. “Ummm, that’s why it’s not a normal migraine.”

“Has this happened before?” Bruce asked, immediately making mental notes. He would add all of this to a file he was making up for Peter.

Ned nodded. “Yeah, umm, after Ben died. Peter was there when – when Ben was shot. Loud noises and flashes of light sometimes triggers – uh – flashbacks I think.”

“Oh god,” Pepper murmured.

“That’s good to know,” Bruce nodded. “Traumatic events like that can trigger some flashbacks. Being surrounded and feeling suffocated like they were, it's no wonder it triggered something.”

“Shit,” Tony sighed.

“FRIDAY’s monitoring him,” Bruce assured Tony and Pepper. “Let’s just give him some time to rest and she can alert us if anything changes. I don’t want to interrupt the quiet or add any light at the moment.”

“Thank you, Bruce,” Pepper smiled at him warmly.

“It’s no problem,” Bruce said. “I can stay here too, for the time being so I can get to him faster if you like.”

Tony patted Bruce on the back. “Sounds good buddy. Hey, you can sign Ned’s chemistry book in the meantime.”

Bruce flushed as Ned scrambled for his backpack and yanked out his chemistry book.

* * *

Tony eyed the three teenagers in his living room as they sat on the couch and watched TV. Happy had only just managed to get May out of her apartment and was on his way back to the Tower with her. Bruce had disappeared to Tony’s lab to start creating a medical file for Peter.

“I can take them back,” Rhodey said, joining Tony’s side in the kitchen. “It’s pretty clear they didn’t tell anyone.”

“I’ve got Natasha looking into the secretary,” Pepper said. “Thanks to Flash’s suggestion.”

“Hmmm,” Tony hummed.

“What is it?” Pepper asked, dancing her fingers over Tony's arm where he was leaning on the kitchen bench.

“They know something,” Tony muttered, jerking his head in the direction of the teens. 

“You think they planned it?” Rhodey asked, glancing at the teenagers before looking back to Tony.

“Have you seen the secret handshake Ned and Peter do?” Tony scoffed. “No way Ned’s selling Peter out. No, they know something about Peter that they’re not telling us.”

“What?” Pepper asked.

Tony pressed his lips together and shook his head. “I don’t know.”

“You think they’re keeping some kind of illness from you?” Rhodey asked. “That they know more about Peter’s headaches than they’re letting on.”

“May would have told us if Peter was sick,” Pepper frowned.

“Yeah,” Tony agreed and looked Pepper in the eyes. “But what if they’re keeping it from May too? Ned seemed to know an awful lot about Peter having sensory overloads.”

“No surprises if he’s keeping things to himself,” Rhodey said, squeezing Tony’s shoulder. “He is your son after all.”

Tony shot Rhodey a withering glare.

“Like father like son,” Rhodey grinned unhelpfully.

“Let’s just see what May says when she gets here,” Pepper said. “Rhodey? Would you mind taking them back home?”

“Of course,” Rhodey said. “I’ll see if I can subtly get anything out of them in the car.” He clapped Tony one more time on the shoulder before moving into the living room to round up the teenagers.

* * *

Peter blinked awake and sluggishly lifted a hand to wipe at the crust that coated his eyes. He rolled onto his back, breathing deeply. The nausea that had been rolling constantly through him was gone and the pulsing pain in his head was no longer beating like a drum. Hesitantly he sat up and waited for any sign that he was still in sensory overload but there was nothing.

“FRIDAY? Can you bring the lights on just a little?” Peter whispered into the room.

Slowly the lights faded on and Peter was relieved that it didn’t make him want to cry. He eyed the bin and water on his bedside table before gently swinging his legs off the bed. He was a little shaky and his stomach rumbled loudly. He recoiled as he sniffed, the linger scent of vomit still on his clothes. He pulled off his clothes and quickly changed into a clean pair of PJs’. He moved the bathroom, gave his teeth a quick clean before he slowly shuffled out of his bedroom.

The hallways were dimly lit, and Peter whispered his thanks to FRIDAY as he shuffled towards the kitchen. It was empty, as was the living room. As Peter entered the kitchen, he caught the time on the oven clock and blinked when he saw that it was nearly three in the morning.

_Right, everyone is asleep_ , Peter thought.

Opening the pantry, Peter rummaged around inside until he found some plain chips. While he wasn’t feeling sick, he didn’t want to test the limits of his stomach just yet. He had just ripped into the bag and shoved a handful in his mouth when he heard rapid footsteps echoing down the hall. He spun around, cheeks bulging as Pepper and Tony came hurrying into the room.

“Hi sweetie, are you okay?” Pepper asked, reaching him first. Her hands automatically went to his forehead, feeling for a temperature.

“m’fine,” Peter spoke around the chips in his mouth, wincing as a few crumbs dropped out.

“Chew, swallow, then speak,” Pepper instructed with an amused smile.

Peter smiled sheepishly and hurried to chew the chips and swallowed them roughly. “Sorry. I’m okay.”

“How’s the head?” Tony came to Pepper’s side, peering closely at Peter.

“Better,” Peter nodded. “A lot better.”

“You had us so worried,” Pepper smoothed back his sweaty curls.

“Sorry,” Peter winced. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“We know buddy,” Tony said. “We’ve just never seen a migraine that bad or sensory overload like that before.”

Peter swallowed, eyes darting between his parents. “Ned told you about that?”

Tony nodded. “He said that you started getting them after Ben passed.”

Peter was never so glad to have Ned as his best friend and as his guy in the chair. Ned had given them the perfect excuse that didn’t involve explaining a certain spider that had bit him and the fact that his senses were now dialled to eleven.

“Yeah,” Peter nodded. “Just – sometimes loud, unexpected noises trigger it. I wasn’t expecting those reporters outside.”

“We’re so sorry about that,” Pepper winced. “We didn’t catch it in time.”

“How did they find out?” Peter asked. “I thought – I thought you hadn’t told anyone yet.”

“We didn’t,” Tony growled. “Your secretary decided to ignore the NDA we gave the school. She sold your story to the media.”

“Oh,” Peter whispered, ducking his head. “For money, right?” 

“Don’t worry, she’s in big trouble,” Tony assured Peter. “I’m so sorry kid.”

“It’s not your fault,” Peter tried to smile but he could feel that it was small and sad. “What happens now?”

“We can discuss that more in the morning,” Pepper hushed. “Right now, you need to be in bed.”

Tony wrapped an arm around Peter’s shoulders and led him out of the kitchen.

Peter felt warm and comforted as Pepper and Tony led him back to his room. They entered with him, Pepper immediately scooping up his soiled clothes while Tony tucked him into bed.

“Thanks,” Peter yawned, not realising how drained he was still feeling until he was back in bed.

“You need rest for the morning. May’s got a lot of questions about you keeping your migraines to yourself.”

“And so, do we,” Pepper warned.

Peter groaned and shuffled down the bed until he was comfortably resting on his head once more. He smiled as his eyes drifted close and a kiss was pressed to his temple. “Glad you are feeling better kid.”

“Me too,” Peter mumbled.

“Sleep tight,” Pepper hummed. “We’ll see you later this morning.”

“M’k mum,” Peter mumbled, already drifting back to sleep.


	9. Part 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everybody! 
> 
> Thank you so much for all the love you have given this story! I am blown away by how many people are reading this! A huge thank you to everyone who has commented and left a like! It honestly makes this so much easier to write! 
> 
> I feel like this is a chapter that many of you have been waiting for so I won't prattle on. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy and I apologies for any mistakes!

“Oh good, you’re awake.”

Tony jumped, spinning around and hand coming up to defend himself. He blinked, released a harsh breath and glared at Natasha who had folded herself up onto the kitchen bench. He dropped his hand and turned to continue making his coffee, willing his heartbeat to calm down.

“How the hell did you even get on this floor?” Tony grumbled.

“I have my ways,” Natasha said evasively.

“Why are you here?” Tony asked, pouring the coffee all the way to the brim of the mug. He lifted it carefully and took a sip, grunting as it gave him the kick he needed to wake up.

“You have the press conference today,” Natasha said. “Just offering my services to you, if you need them.”

“You plan on taking out the reporters?” Tony quirked a brow upwards. “You may be out of luck. I think Pepper got to them first.”

Natasha smirked. “She can't have all the fun.”

Tony shook his head and took another sip of coffee. “You’re welcome to tag along.”

Unfolding herself from the kitchen bench, Natasha landed lightly on the ground. “I think I will.”

“Peter would love it,” Tony smirked, half hidden by his coffee mug. “Aunt Natasha as his personal bodyguard.”

“Aunt Natasha,” she murmured. Louder, she said, “I’ll be there.” And then she left via the elevator, leaving Tony staring fondly after her.

Pepper was already dousing fires in her office, getting ready for the press conference that she had organised to have at eleven. She had left with strict instructions to make sure that Peter ate a decent breakfast and that he be dressed ready to go. He started on the first half of the instructions and had half made pancake batter when he saw Peter peeking his head around the corridor.

“Pete,” Tony smirked, amused. “Aunt May isn’t up yet.”

Peter shuffled out from his hiding space, still checking his surroundings before he relaxed onto a stool at the kitchen bench. “Just checking.”

Tony didn’t blame the kid. When May had arrived at the tower, looking frazzled and annoyed, she had immediately asked for Peter.

“Where is Peter?” May had frowned. “I thought the school signed an NDA,”

“They did,” Pepper had growled. “The secretary ignored it and caused this entire thing to blow up in our faces.”

“Peter’s in his room, resting. He had a sensory overload,” Tony had explained, watching May's reaction carefully.

“Sensory overload?” May repeated, eyes squinting behind her glasses “What caused that?”

“You didn’t know?” Tony asked. “Ned said that Peter’s had some sensory overloads since Ben died.”

May sighed and had fallen into the nearest chair. “Oh Peter. He never said anything.”

“Seems like him and Ned have been trying to deal with it on their own,” Tony said. “By the sounds of it, loud noises and lights can trigger it.”

May had taken off her glasses and rubbed at her eyes. “Why didn’t he just tell me?”

“We will be having a talk when he feels better,” Pepper had said.

“Good,” May slipped her glasses back on. “I’d like to be there, if that’s okay.”

“Thought you might,” Tony smirked.

Tony finished making the batter and started pouring it into the pan, the batter hissing as it touched the heat. “How are you feeling this morning?”

“Starving,” Peter moaned, slipping out of his stool and shuffling to Tony’s side. He sniffed the air, licking his lips. “Are these…”

“They’re for you,” Tony laughed. “Back! Go on, shoo, they’re not ready yet.”

Peter pouted and made a wounded noise but shuffled to the fridge to get some juice.

“Other than hungry, how is your head? Any pain?” Tony asked.

“None,” Peter said, grabbing a glass from the cabinet.

“Good,” Tony nodded. “How come you didn’t tell us about this? Or even May?” He glanced over his shoulder to watch Peter.

“I didn’t want May to worry,” Peter shrugged, filling up the glass before twisting the cap back on the bottle. “We had just lost Ben. I didn’t want to add to her stress.”

Tony flipped the pancake over and then turned to face Peter. “Kid, that is something that May would have wanted to know about. It’s something me and your mum want to know about.” He shook his head, trying to banish the image of seeing Peter so sick. It had taken him a long time to fall asleep last night. “We thought something was seriously wrong. We already lost you once, we don’t want to again.”

Peter ducked his head. “I’m sorry.”

Tony moved to Peter, pulling him into a hug. He kissed the top of Peter’s head when he felt his son’s arms wrap around him.

“You can tell us anything. I mean it,” Tony said firmly. “You can come to us for anything. We want you too. We love you so much Peter.”

“I love you too,” Peter whispered against Tony’s chest.

Tony kissed Peter’s head again, squeezing him tighter.

“Hey dad?” Peter asked.

Tony’s heart stuttered, warmth filling his chest. “Yeah?”

“The pancakes are burning.”

“Shit!” Tony pushed Peter away and hurried to the pan to flip the pancake off.

One side was perfectly brown while the other was looking a little charred. Tony felt Peter come up behind him and peer over his shoulder.

“Can I still eat that? I wasn’t kidding about being starving.”

* * *

Peter could hear the chatter of what seemed like a thousand reporters behind the thick wooden oak doors that separated him from them. He tugged nervously at the jacket he wore and looked longingly at the elevator that would take him back up to the apartment. He would rather be back up there, listening to May chew him out about keeping medical problems to himself.

“You’re going do great, Peter,” Pepper soothed. “It will be over before you know it.”

“What if I screw it up?” Peter asked, eyes widening as a slow horror crept up his throat. “What if I just make it worse? What if I say something stupid?”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Tony interrupted his babble. “Breathe, kiddo. You’re not going to say anything stupid. I promise.”

“What if they ask me a question I can’t answer?” Peter whined.

“They’re not going to,” Pepper said. “We are giving a statement and not taking questions. All you have to do is just stand with us okay.”

Peter nodded. “Right. Just stand there. I can do that.”

“You can’t do anything worse than what your father has,” Pepper winked.

“I’d be offended but she’s right,” Tony gave a half shrug and a little smile. “Your mum has gotten my through some tough PR nightmares. This is nothing compared to them.”

“Like when you said you were Iron Man?” Peter perked up a little.

Tony winced. “Exactly like that.”

“All you had to do was stick to the cue cards,” Pepper muttered but she was smiling.

“But look how well it turned out!” Tony cried.

Pepper shook her head fondly as Natasha slipped out of the big wooden oak doors. “Are you ready?”

Tony and Pepper looked to Peter.

Not trusting his voice, Peter took a deep breath and nodded.

“Just remember,” Tony said, throwing an arm around his shoulders. “The cameras are going to start flashing when we step inside. Just keep your head down, okay and take your time.”

“I got it,” Peter said. “I’m prepared this time.”

“You’ll do great, Peter,” Natasha smiled at him.

Feeling bold, Peter grinned, and the door was pushed open. Tony had been right and the second the door had opened, camera flashes started going off. Peter was much better prepared to them this time and as the chatter grew louder, he was able to block most of it out. Tony kept a firm arm around him as they stepped up to a small podium. Peter blinked at the reporters. He couldn’t believe that they were there for him.

“Thank you everyone,” Pepper said, standing tall and her voice ringing out over the room. “You are aware of what this press conference is about due to yesterday’s complete lack of decorum and respect when news broke out that our son, Peter, had been returned home and you chased four teenagers down the street for an interview.”

Peter shrunk into Tony at Pepper’s scolding and he could see several people shift guilty. Peter did not envy anyone who was a reporter right now.

“The person in question who leaked this information has been charged for breaking an NDA agreement,” Pepper continued. “Several reporters have also been charged with child endangerment for chasing four teenagers down the streets of Queens.”

Tony squeezed Peter’s shoulder before he was stepping forward to the microphone and Pepper was by his side, taking his hand in hers.

“I want to thank everyone who has helped us in the search for our son,” Tony said. “It has been a long eleven years and the tireless efforts of the FBI and Stark Industries has not gone unnoticed. Without them, we wouldn’t have Peter here with us today.” Tony paused and Peter felt the shift in his tone as it became firmer. “As you can imagine, this has been a very emotional time for our family, and I ask you to respect the privacy we are asking for as we move forward. Thank you.”

The room erupted in an explosion of questions and Peter winced at the noise level. He squeezed Pepper’s hand and leaned in close. “Can I say something?”

Pepper smiled at him. “Of course.”

He stepped forward, Tony whirling in surprise as Peter gently slid into the space at his size.

“Umm, hi,” Peter said, wincing as his voice rang out over the room.

The questions stopped instantly, and he could feel the room leaning towards him in bated breath.

“Hi,” Peter repeated, taking a shaky breath. “I – I just wanted to say that I’m really happy that Tony and Pepper found me, even if I didn’t know I was missing.” Pepper squeezed his hand while Tony took his other. “This is all really new to me and I’m not really sure why you find it all that interesting.” There was a small chuckle at his words. “I would really appreciate it if you gave me the chance to get to know my parents and it would be kind hard if they find out that I failed my English test before I had the chance to make up an excuse.” Peter grinned at the laughter he got. “Ummm thank you. Oh! And -uh – could you please not chase me or my friends? Some of us have asthma.”

Peter stepped away from the microphone and the questions roared back to life. The three of the ignored them though and hand in hand they left the room, the oak doors closing behind them and blocking them from view once more.

“How was I?” Peter asked, feeling giddy and out of breath.

“You were a natural,” Pepper assured him.

“Good job, kid,” Tony grinned. “I think this deserves something special.”

* * *

“He looks like he’s having fun,” Pepper hummed, leaning into Tony’s side.

“He sure does,” Tony laughed.

Both watched as Peter accepted the glass that DUM-E was handing him, giving the robot a pat and lighting up as the robot let out a series of happy chirps. They both grinned as Peter took a small sip, shuddering at the taste before putting the glass down and distracting DUM-E with an idea.

The other Avengers were lingering around, enjoying the large quantities of food that Tony had ordered. They had all been there watching the press conference and were eager to distract Peter from the constant repeat of it that was being shown on every form of media.

“I hate to interrupt this moment,” Natasha said, appearing from nowhere. She had changed from the pencil skirt and blouse she had worn to the press conference and into something more comfortable.

“Then don’t,” Tony snarked with a smirk, grunting when Pepper smacked him.

“What’s up, Nat,” Pepper asked.

“We need to have a chat soon,” Natasha said quietly. “I’ve been doing some digging into Ben, like you asked.”

Tony looked over to Peter who was still distracted by DUM-E, laughing at the robot that started chasing Scott around the living room.

“You find something?” Tony asked.

“Potentially, I’m still chasing up on some leads but should have some answers soon,” Natasha said simply. “Bruce has also been going over their notes too. It looks like he’s nearly finished deciphering what they mean.”

Pepper face hardened. “If there is something to find, I want it to disappear before anyone else goes digging into it. While the world may have thought that Peter is adorable, they still are looking for a story here.”

Natasha nodded. “Don’t worry, I’ve been erasing any trace as I go along. Ben’s movements throughout the years will be like a ghost.”

All three turned at the loud laughter in the living room. Peter was doubled over as DUM-E cooed a series of beeps at Scott who was face planted into the floor, groaning. Clint was smiling smugly while Wanda giggled helplessly into a couch cushion.

“Whatever we find,” Pepper said. “Peter doesn’t need to know.”

* * *

The news of Peter Stark returning home remained the top headline in the country for a week before it finally began to die down. Returning to school has been a weird experience for Peter, not used to the many eyes watching him walk down a hallway with Ned. But his classmates got over it pretty quickly when they saw that Peter was still the same nerd and they left him alone much to his relief.

“Thanks for the lift, Happy!” Peter cried as he clambered out of the car, free from school as the weekend had finally rolled around.

He grinned as Happy grumbled a goodbye and bounded over to the lift.

“Hello Peter,” FRIDAY greeted him as the lift doors closed.

“Hey FRIDAY. How are you?” Peter asked.

“I am well,” FRIDAY responded, as she always did. No matter how many times the AI told Peter that she didn’t have feelings, he continued to treat her like a person. “Where would you like to go?”

“Take me to Dad please” Peter said. “Ned’s birthday is coming up and I wanted to ask dad if he would help me build a lightsaber for him.”

“Sounds like an excellent idea,” FRIDAY said. “Do you want me to pull up some research for you?”

“Oh, yeah that would be great. Thanks!”

When the lift came to a stop and the door opened, Peter was momentarily taken aback when he stepped out onto the Avengers floor. He shrugged but ventured out of the lift. The common room was empty as was the kitchen, so Peter started wondering in search of his dad. He decided to check the lab first and headed in that direction. As he got closer, he grinned when he heard voices and picked up his pace –

Only to slow down again when he listened to the voices speak.

“I guess this proves that he knew,” Pepper said, her voice sounding angry.

“Yeah, I would say a letter is pretty damning evidence that Ben knew about Peter,” Tony growled.

Peter froze in the hallway. They were talking about Ben. Did Ben know? All that time that Peter had been living with Ben and May, he had known that Peter wasn’t related to them? Peter shook his head. No, Ben wouldn’t have done that. He would never have kept Peter away from his parents. Dropping his bag to the floor, Peter kicked off his shoes. He reached into his back and slipped his web shooters on before he looked around to make sure no one was watching before he jumped to the ceiling. He stuck easily and crept along the ceiling until he reached the lab.

“Where did you even get this?” Pepper asked.

“I found it among the papers Tony brought back from the storage unit,” Natasha said. “It was a part of a will agreement that the Parker’s had made. It was to be sent to Ben if they were to pass away. It looks like it wasn’t sent through until Peter turned eight due to the investigation surrounding the crash.”

Peter crawled to the door and peeked over the edge.

Tony was pacing angrily while Pepper, Natasha and Bruce were spread out around a large bench, papers filling every inch of the table.

The door was open, and Peter carefully manoeuvred himself through the door. He paused when he got inside but nobody had noticed his entrance. With a mental fist bump he crawled across the ceiling to come hover directly over them, peering down at the papers.

“Who cares when he got it,” Tony snapped. “He still willingly kept Peter!”

Pepper shook her head. “I don’t understand why he would. From the looks of these accounts, Richard and Mary had already blown through the 20 Million dollars Obadiah had given them for taking Peter in the first place. It’s not as if he would be getting any money from them and he never ransomed Peter off.”

“Maybe,” Bruce said slowly. “He was protecting Peter.”

“Protecting Peter?” Tony scoffed. “From who? Us?”

“I’ve been going through Richard and Mary’s research,” Bruce said, pointing at the papers. “The biological engineering formulas they were looking into is much more advanced than what some scientists are working on today.”

“How advanced?” Tony demanded, stopping his pacing and staring at Bruce.

“Very,” Bruce said gravely. “They were looking into merging DNA with another species. The only other person I know who has been working on that is Doctor Farley Stillwell.”

Peter frowned, recognising the name. He was one of the scientists who they were introduced to when they had their field trip to OSCORP. He had said that he was a biological engineer and that he was currently researching spider DNA. Then he had led them into a room that held nearly every species of spider. He failed to mention the radioactive spider that bit Peter.

“What aren’t you telling us Bruce?” Pepper frowned.

Bruce sighed. “Judging by the notes that are here.” He hesitated, looking between Tony and Pepper before he heaved another sigh. “It looks like they did some experiments on Peter.”

“WHAT?!” Pepper and Tony exploded.

Peter jaw dropped. His fake parents had experimented on him? He wracked his brain for any memory of him being experimented on, but it was coming up blank. Surely he would have noticed if he had been experimented on, right?

“The worst they did was give him asthma,” Bruce said quickly. “Not that it excuses anything that they did.”

“Your damn right it doesn’t,” Tony spat, slamming a hand down on the bench.

“It could explain why Ben didn’t say anything,” Bruce said. “Maybe he found out, just like we did, that Peter had been experimented on and wanted to keep him safe.”

That did sound like Ben. He had always protected Peter but there was a flaw in Bruce’s logic. The only thing that Peter had was bad asthma and there were plenty of people in the world who also had it. It didn’t exactly warrant Ben from keeping him from his parents. Ben couldn’t have known that Peter was kidnapped.

“The migraines and the sensory overloads,” Pepper said. “Could that be due to the experiments.”

“It could be, but Peter said they didn’t start until after Ben died,” Bruce said.

“He kept them from May,” Natasha pointed out. “He could have easily hid the episodes from them.”

“A six-year-old with a raging migraine isn’t going to be able to keep that quiet,” Bruce shook his head. “I mean, it’s possible that it could be a delayed effect, but I would need Peter’s blood to really look into what they did to him.”

“Ben wasn’t a scientist,” Tony said, flicking at the papers. “He would have had to have had someone translate this for him.”

“May’s a nurse,” Natasha said. “Perhaps this is something that she could have translated?”

Pepper bit her lip. “She’s been adamant that she didn’t know anything about this.”

Natasha shrugged. “People lie.”

Anger flared up inside of Peter and in an instant, he stuck a web to the roof and propelled down, so he was eye level with Natasha, glaring at her furiously.

Natasha jumped back, hand going to her belt and settling on the dagger handle that stuck out.

“May didn’t know! She would never do that to me,” he yelled. “You don’t know what you are talking about.”

The room rang with silence and Peter watched as Natasha’s eyes slowly drifted upwards, locking on to the single web that Peter was hanging from.

_Shit_


	10. Part 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys! I am so thrilled that you all enjoyed the reveal! I was so nervous but you have all given it so much love so thank you so much! 
> 
> Huge thank you to everyone who is reviewing and leaving likes! You are all so wonderful! 
> 
> There has been a few reviews that I can't reply to due to them being a guest (on FanFiction.net) so I just want to quickly mention it here: First thanks for reviewing and reading! I'm glad you are enjoying the story! You've pointed out that Peter is too intelligent and is acting immature here - don't forget that as smart as Peter is, he is still only fifteen years old who whole world has been turned upside down - sometimes he isn't going to be thinking straight so just keep that in mind as you are reading :) 
> 
> I hope you enjoy the next chapter and I apologize for any mistakes!

Tony's jaw clenched as he stared at the upside-down figure of his son, hanging lightly by a single web. His eyes didn’t want to believe what he was seeing but there was no denying it.

Peter was Spider-Man.

“How are you doing that?” Pepper asked slowly.

Tony saw Peter tense before he was slowly spinning on his web. His face was pulled in anger but there was worry deep in his eyes that was hard to miss.

“You’re Spider-Man,” Tony said through clenched teeth, anger and worry flaring up quickly inside of him. “This whole time; helping me with the suit, the day on the rooftop, that was you and you never said a word.”

“Like you told me that you were looking into Ben?” Peter snapped.

“Get down,” Tony growled.

Peter glared but flipped himself with the ease of a gymnast and landed lightly on the end of the table.

“You were looking into Ben,” Peter said hotly. “You were looking, and you didn’t tell me! Ben didn’t know and either did May. They didn’t! You’re lying!” He shot a glare at Natasha who looked impassively back.

“You think we would just stop once we got you home?” Tony asked and when he saw Peter open his mouth to retaliate, he pushed ahead. “No, this is where you zip it. The adult is talking. I know it doesn’t feel like you were kidnapped but you were. You were taken from us and if you think that we were just going to stop looking into who did this then you were wrong.”

“Peter,” Pepper said. “We had to look into Ben, there were too many inconsistencies surrounding your kidnapping and why you weren’t found sooner.”

“You love Ben, I get it, but he wasn’t telling you the truth,” Tony said. “He knew that you were taken from us, Peter. He knew.”

“No, he didn’t!” Peter burst out. “He didn’t know! Neither did May! They love me.”

“And we love you,” Pepper stressed. “I’m sorry, Peter. I really am but what Ben did wasn’t okay. He willingly kept you from us.”

“No,” Peter shook his head. “We were fine. Fine before we ever met you!”

* * *

Peter regretted the words the moment they were out of his mouth. Pepper looked as if she had been struck and Tony's jaw was so tight Peter was afraid he was going to break a tooth.

“I’m sorry,” Peter said instantly, the anger fading and quickly replaced by guilt. “I didn’t mean it.”

Tony took a sharp breath in and a very quiet voice said, “Go to your room.”

Peter instantly backed away to the door. “I didn’t mean it.”

Then he turned and fled. He ran out the room. He sprinted down the hallway, scooping up his backpack and shoes. FRIDAY already had the elevator door open and waiting for him to go. He slipped in, breathing heavily as the doors closed behind him. It didn’t take long before the doors were opening again, and Peter stepped out onto his floor.

He swallowed thickly and rubbed at his face as tears dribbled down his cheeks.

“I didn’t mean it,” Peter whispered into the room.

He hiccupped, rubbing at his eyes again and headed to his room. He ripped open his backpack, pulling out his suit. He hesitated for a moment, feeling the fabric between his fingers. The image of Pepper’s hurt face flashed into his mind and he was stripping out of his clothes and pulling on the suit.

He pulled on his mask as he left his room, heading to the balcony. He sniffed loudly, blinking at the tears that welled in his eyes, the mask soaking them up in an instant. Then he did the one thing he had been longing to do since he had gotten to the Tower. He ran and took a flying leap of the balcony, shooting a web out as he did to snag the side of the building.

It didn’t feel nearly as good as he had hoped.

* * *

Tony wrapped an arm around Pepper once he heard Peter’s footsteps fall away. “FRIDAY, once he’s on our floor, lock down the elevator. I don’t want him leaving.”

“Yes boss,” FRIDAY responded.

“He’s just upset,” Pepper said quietly but Tony could hear the hurt in her voice. “Everything’s changing again for him again.” 

Tony pressed a kiss to Pepper’s temple.

“Did they do this to him, in their experiments?” Pepper whispered, horror seeping out into her tone.

“It’s possible,” Bruce said quietly.

“It would explain why Ben kept Peter,” Natasha said. “If he knew that Mary and Richard had experimented on Peter, giving him his powers then he may have kept Peter for himself.”

“We don’t even know what his powers are,” Tony growled. “I can’t believe they experimented _on my son_.”

“Oh my god,” Pepper breathed. “He can catch a bus with his bare hands.”

Tony scrubbed a hand down his face as he remembered the video. “What the hell did they do to him.”

“I’ll keep going through the papers,” Bruce said. “See if I can find out what they did. You should talk to Peter though.”

“Boss,” FRIDAY interrupted. “Peter has left the building.”

“I thought I told you to lock down the elevator?” Tony growled.

“I did Boss,” FRIDAY said. “He didn’t leave via the elevator.”

“Shit,” Tony groaned, already moving towards the door. “I have to go get him.”

“Tony,” Pepper called after him, making him pause. “Go easy on him. This isn’t his fault.”

“I know it’s not,” Tony said. “I just want to keep him safe.”

* * *

Peter sat on the edge of a building, legs dangling, and a churro held limply in one hand. The sun was beginning to set and he had a perfect view of it, but he couldn’t appreciate the beauty of it. He had tried to patrol, tried to erase the image of Pepper’s hurt face and that they had been looking into Ben. He stopped a robbery and helped a lady with directions (who had then bought him the churro) but it wasn’t enough to dispel the conversation playing on a loop through his head. It distracted him and when he stopped a hit and run, he managed to break his arm in the process.

He heard the sound of the Iron Man suit fast approaching and he sniffed, cradling his arm closer to his chest. He didn’t flinch as he heard the suit land on the roof, instead bowed his head low enough that his chin rested on his chest. He listened to the hiss of the suit as it opened up and the light footsteps as Tony stepped out.

“You know, out of all the people I imagined being Spider-Man I never expected it to be my own nephew,” Rhodey’s voice had Peter’s freezing. “You really have a handle on those web’s huh?”

Peter heard Rhodey cross the rooftop before he came to lean on the edge of the building beside Peter. “You got your dad flying all over Queens looking for you.”

“I didn’t mean it,” Peter sniffed. “I didn’t mean what I said.”

“Oh, Pete, they know,” Rhodey said. “Tempers are just running a little high at the moment.”

Peter shook his head. “They won’t want me back. I said - I said something awful to mum and dad.”

“Won’t – Pete, you’ve got Tony flying all over Queens right now,” Rhodey shook his head. “I’ve got Pepper calling me every few seconds asking for an update on you. You have no idea how far they will go to keep you safe.”

“They were angry,” Peter sniffed. “That I’m Spider-Man and that I didn’t believe them.”

“They were a little taken aback,” Rhodey agreed. “But they aren’t angry at you.”

“Why?” Peter hiccupped. He flinched when he felt hands on his mask and slowly it was peeled away from his face. When it was clear, he rubbed at his face to try and wipe away the tears.

“I don’t think you quite understand just how much they love you,” Rhodey said, gently rubbing Peter’s back. “When you first went missing.” Rhodey shook his head. “Your parents were in a bad way. Really bad and it took them a long time to turn it all around. They never stopped missing you, Pete. They turned the world upside down to find you.”

Peter blinked wetly at Rhodey. “They did?”

“Yeah, they did,” Rhodey nodded. “We all did. You are the most important person to them. They also don’t want to ever lose you again.”

“Is that why they were looking into Ben?” Peter asked quietly.

“Yes,” Rhodey said. “They needed to know who took you and why, just in case they were working with more people who would come after you.”

Peter sniffed as more tears rolled down his cheeks. “Ben wouldn’t have kept me from mum and dad.”

“You knew Ben,” Rhodey said. “We didn’t but from what we can see, I’m really sorry Peter but Ben did know. Those who took you, they experimented on you. They turned you into this. Maybe Ben was trying to keep you safe, we don’t know, and I hope he was. But Tony and Pepper, all of us, won’t stop until we find out the truth.”

“Wait – my fake parents didn’t turn me into Spider-Man,” Peter sniffed, shaking his head.

Rhodey opened his mouth to respond but at that moment Iron Man landed heavily onto the rooftop. Peter and Rhodey turned to see the suit open and Tony came stumbling out.

“Peter!” Tony said, jogging over to them.

Peter swung his legs back over the edge of the building and stood up, new tears forming in his eyes.

“Dad, I’m sorry,” Peter sniffed. “I didn’t mean it.”

“I know you didn’t,” Tony said, reaching out and pulling Peter into a hug.

Peter hissed as his broken arm was jostled and Tony stumbled back, face white.

“What happened?” He demanded, gently reaching out to touch Peter’s arm. He looked to Rhodey who shrugged, eyeing Peter’s arm with the same shock Tony was. 

“I broke it,” Peter mumbled, holding it tightly to his chest. “I’m sorry. I – I was distracted as I tried to help someone.”

“It’s okay. Did you help them?” Tony gently rubbed Peter’s shoulder.

“Yeah, they’re okay,” Peter nodded.

“Let’s get you home and have Bruce take a look alright?” Tony squeezed Peter’s shoulder and looked to Rhodey who gave a nod.

“It’s fine,” Peter sniffed. “It’s already healing.”

“Already…” Tony trailed off. “Let’s just get back, okay?”

“Is –“ Peter hesitated, biting his lip. “Is mum really mad at me?”

“Only worried,” Tony assured him. “We both are.”

Peter nodded and gently leaned his head against Tony’s shoulder. “I’m really sorry I yelled at you.”

Tony's hand came up to cradle the back of his head. “It’s okay.” He pressed a kiss to the top of his head. “Let’s get you home.” He plucked the churro from Peter’s hand. “Are you going to eat this?”

Peter shook his head.

Tony tossed the churro away and started leading Peter back to the Iron Man suit.

* * *

Pepper was on her feet as she watched Rhodey and Tony land on the balcony, Peter cradled in Tony’s arms. Her worry only increased when she saw Peter cradling his arm awkwardly to his chest.

She hurried to the door and as soon as Peter stepped inside, she pulled him into a gentle hug, mindful of his arm. “I’m so glad you’re home.” She kissed the top of his head, inhaling deeply as she closed her eyes in relief. “You had me so worried.”

“I’m sorry,” Peter mumbled into her collar bone. “I didn’t mean it. I didn’t. I love you.”

“I know,” Pepper hushed, gently peeling the mask from his face. Her heart clenched when she saw the red-rimmed eyes and the tear stains on his cheek. She smoothed back his sweaty curls and placed a kiss on his forehead. “It’s okay, sweetheart.”

“I’m sorry,” Peter mumbled again.

Tony and Rhodey, now both armour-less, stepped inside and shut the door behind them.

“What happened to your arm?” Pepper asked, stepping back and her hands hovered over the awkward looking limb.

“I broke it,” Peter sniffed. “It’s fine. It’s already healing.”

Pepper shot a wide-eyed look to Tony.

“FRIDAY get Bruce to the med bay,” Tony said. “We will meet him there.”

“I’ll go update the Avengers,” Rhodey said as they all headed to the elevator. “Tell them they can call off the search for Spider-Man.”

“I can’t believe you stole Cap’s shield,” Tony shook his head.

Peter’s eyes widened. “Oh no, he’s going to be so mad.”

“He will be impressed,” Pepper said as she shot Tony a dirty look as he laughed. “Don’t worry about that, let’s just focus on fixing your arm.”

Bruce was waiting in the med bay when they got to the Avenger’s floor and Rhodey left them to update the Avengers.

“What seems to be the problem,” Bruce asked, smiling softly as they entered the room.

“Peter broke his arm,” Pepper said, directing Peter to the bed.

“It’s fine,” Peter said but hopped up on the bed anyway. “It’s healing.”

“FRIDAY, can you scan Peter?” Bruce asked.

“Scanning Peter,” FRIDAY responded. A minute later she responded and a nearby monitor lit up with an x-ray. “Peter’s arm appears to be broken but is healing at a rapid pace.”

Bruce raised his eyebrows, looking from the x-ray to Peter. “You’re arm – this looks like it’s already three weeks healed. How long ago did you do this?”

“About an hour ago,” Peter said. “It should be fully healed in another couple of hours.”

“That’s,” Bruce glanced at Pepper and Tony. “Remarkable.”

“It’s pretty cool,” Peter admitted.

“You think it’s on par with Steve’s healing factor?” Tony asked.

“I think it’s better,” Bruce admitted. “I mean, I can’t be sure without any tests but yeah, I’d say Peter could give Steve a run for his money.”

“You think they injected him with something like they did Steve?” Pepper worried, hand carding through Peter’s hair as she hovered protectively by his side.

“Whoa injected? Hold on nobody injected me with anything,” Peter said, looking between her and Tony.

“Pete,” Tony said gently. “I know this hard –“

“No, I mean, I heard you talking about how my fake parents did experiments on me,” Peter said quickly. “But they didn’t do this.”

Pepper gently tugged at Peter’s curls. “You think someone else did? Do you remember something or _someone_?”

“Yeah, a spider bit me,” Peter said simply, sounding almost annoyed.

“A spider did this?” Bruce clarified.

“Yeah, like, 8 months ago,” Peter nodded. “I was on a field trip to OSCORP –“

Bruce and Tony looked at each sharply.

“ – and we were in this room with all these spiders and it was so creepy. I hate spiders.”

“You named yourself Spider-Man even though you hate spiders?” Pepper smirked, though her inside was a knot with worry. How much did her son have to go through?

“I was sticking to the theme,” Peter protested. “Anyway, I felt this really sharp pain and looked down to see this spider. I took it, you know just in case, but it died and then I got, like, super sick. Like, I thought I was going to die. But then I woke up and I felt amazing!”

“and you decided to become a vigilante?” Tony asked.

“Well, not at first,” Peter admitted quietly. “But then, Ben got shot and I – I didn’t do anything. And I thought, I thought if you could do the things I can and you don’t and then the bad things happen, they happen because of you. Like - like Ben.”

“That wasn’t your fault,” Pepper said, gentle but firm. If Peter was as much like Tony as he was proving to be then he would be blaming himself for Ben’s death.

“Maybe,” Peter murmured. “But I could have helped.”

“You could have died too,” Tony said firmly. “I don’t think Ben would have wanted that.”

“Does May know?” Pepper asked, dreading the answer. She would be furious if May had been lying to her all this time. She had grown fond of the woman and would hate to kick her out of Peter’s life but she would do anything to protect her son.

Peter shook his head almost violently. “No! No, she doesn’t know I swear.”

Pepper sighed, half in relief. “We have got to talk about you keeping things to yourself. It’s going to get you into a lot of trouble one day.”

“The migraine and the sensory overload you experienced the other day,” Bruce asked. “Was that because of your powers?”

“Yeah,” Peter winced. “Ever since I got bitten it’s like my senses have been dialled to eleven. I mean, it even cured my asthma.”

“So you did have asthma?” Pepper asked.

“Yeah and it was really bad. I couldn’t even play sports,” Peter nodded. “But now –“

“You can swing around Queens,” Tony finished, looking stern.

“Are you going to make me stop?” Peter asked quietly.

Pepper looked at Tony, who caught her eye. As much as they would rather wrap Peter up in a bubble, they were both beginning to learn that their son was stubborn and extremely kind-hearted. Even if they did, he would no doubt find a way to get back out on the street to help people. Probably with the help of his very loyal friend Ned.

“No,” Tony said reluctantly. “But there is going to be a serious discussion about all of this.”

“And rules,” Pepper added sternly. “Along with a curfew.”

Peter nodded rapidly. “Of course. Thank you. Thank you so much.”

“The webs,” Tony asked, sounding curious. “Who manufactured them?”

“I did,” Peter finally began to smile, his posture finally uncurling.

Pepper could see that Peter had been dying to tell Tony about this for some time. She smiled fondly at her boys, thinking how much he and Tony were alike. It was a wonder that Peter had been able to keep this to himself for so long. She cursed herself for not seeing it sooner but was thankful that her son was okay. 

“You made it?” Tony stared at Peter intently.

“Yeah, I made it during chemistry class,” Peter said.

“In chemistry class,” Tony repeated somewhat weakly and he shared another glance with Pepper.

Peter winced, eyes glancing to the door. “Oh.”

“What?” Tony asked, suddenly alert.

“The Avengers just realised that they tried to knock me out,” Peter said.

Pepper looked to the door, a frown on her face. “How do you know that?” She turned back to Peter who tapped the side of his head.

“Super hearing,” Peter said.

Pepper and Tony shared another look. This was definitely going to be a learning curve as they discovered the extent of Peter’s powers.

* * *

Rhodey entered the lounge room, immediately gaining the attention of Natasha.

“Was that Peter I just saw?” She asked. “You found him?”

‘Yeah, we got him,” Rhodey nodded.

“Found him? Did something happen to Peter?” Steve asked, putting down the book he had been reading, looking worriedly at the two of them.

At his words, Clint, Scott, Wanda, Vision and Sam who had been watching the news turned. Sam shut the TV off, giving Rhodey his full attention.

“You didn’t tell them?” Rhodey asked Natasha.

“Not my secret to tell,” Natasha shrugged. 

“Right,” Rhodey nodded. “Okay, as you know we have been looking into Ben, Richard and Mary Parker.”

“You found something,” Steve stated.

“It looks as if Ben knew that Peter was kidnapped,” Rhodey said heavily.

“Have you discovered why?” Vision asked.

“Not yet,” Natasha answered. “I think we can rule out money though. The Parkers had gone through the millions Obadiah gave them and Ben never ransomed for any money.”

“So why would he keep Peter a secret?” Clint asked. “What does he gain out of it?”

“It looks like Richard and Mary were experimenting on Peter,” Rhodey said.

Steve stood up at the news, hands curling into fists at his sides. “They experimented on a child?”

“Bruce is still looking into it,” Natasha said. “But yes, they did. With some very interesting results.”

“Oh, I don’t think that was from them,” Rhodey said.

Natasha cocked her head to this side. “You think someone else did this to him?”

“Peter said it wasn’t them who did it,” Rhodey said.

“Do what?” Scott asked, looking between the two of them. “What are you two talking about.”

“Think of it this way,” Natasha said. “We can stop looking for Spider-Man.”

“Peter is Spider-Man?” Steve asked. “He’s the enhanced individual we’ve been looking for?”

“You’re joking,” Sam said, deadpanned.

“Nope,” Rhodey said. “Apple doesn’t fall far from the tree after all.”

“He’s fifteen!” Steve stressed. “He shouldn’t have these powers at all!”

Clint’s eyes widened. “Oh my god. I shot an arrow at him.”

“We tried to knock out Tony’s kid,” Steve’s eyes widened.

“To be fair,” Natasha pointed out. “We didn’t _know_ it was Peter.”

“I think I should just retire,” Clint said miserably. “If Tony doesn’t kill me Pepper will.”

“Peter must hate us,” Steve sighed, sinking back down to the couch with his head in his hands.

“If he did,” Wanda said. “I don’t think he would have returned your shield.”

Steve looked up, hand dropping from his face. “I don’t know how we didn’t see it before. It was such a Stark thing to do.”

Natasha grinned wickedly while Scott snorted with laughter.

“We can’t tell Fury,” Steve said, suddenly serious. “Peter’s a child and should have no business with SHIELD.”

“Agreed,” Rhodey said. “I don’t want my nephew anywhere near SHIELD.”

“You think you can keep it from Fury?” Natasha asked.

“Super spy or not,” Clint grunted. “If Pepper finds out he was using Peter, we’d never find the body.”

“I’m not telling,” Scott said. “Do you know how much Hank and Hope would kill me if I lost this suit? Because if Pepper found out it was me who blabbed, I’d be in trouble.”

“We can’t hide it forever,” Steve said. “But it should be Tony’s choice to tell Fury or not. Agreed?”

The team nodded in unison.

“Where is Peter now?” Steve asked.

“Med bay,” Rhodey said. “He was a little upset when he overheard us discussing Ben and managed to break his arm patrolling.”

“I have to admit,” Natasha said. “He’s quite stealthy for someone untrained. I didn’t see him enter the room.”

Clint smirked. “Someone snuck up on The Black Widow. Please tell me there is footage.”

“Nothing that you will ever see,” Natasha glared. “And don’t even think about recruiting him for pranks.”

“Sure, whatever,” Clint shrugged casually.

While the other’s fell into conversation about Peter and what Natasha had found out about those who took him, Steve stood up and made his way to Rhodey’s side.

“Is he alright?” Steve asked quietly.

“He’s taking the news about Ben really hard,” Rhodey said. “It’s why he webbed off in the first place.”

“Is there anything we can do?” Steve asked.

“Do what you are doing,” Rhodey said. “Help Tony and Pepper get to the truth of it all so Peter can be safe.”

“Of course,” Steve nodded. “We’ll do anything to keep Peter safe.”

* * *

Agent Williamson hung up the phone, dropping it into the cradle with more force than necessary. He had just gotten off the phone with the private plane charter that Richard and Mary Parker had used before their untimely death. An investigation had already been undertaken at the time of the crash and Williamson had that report, but he was hoping for something a little more. The crash had been ruled an accident, but something in Williamson’s gut was telling him that something wasn’t adding up.

Why had they been on the plane in the first place? As far as Williamson could tell, Richard and Mary had quite the set up in San Francisco. A deep dive into their financial records showed that in the three years that they had Peter they had managed to burn through 20 Million Dollars. If Williamson had to guess, he would say that the Parker’s had been on that plane to meet an investor overseas where the plane was scheduled to land. But Williamson had no proof of this, and it was beginning to frustrate him.

What’s more is that Williamson had started looking into Ben Parker but the closer he got the more the man seemed to become a ghost. He was sure that this was Stark’s doing. He wasn’t ignorant enough to believe that Stark wouldn’t be looking into this himself. However, it was beginning to impede his investigation and he would hate to drag Peter back into questioning when the teenager’s life was already an unsteady balance. He had seen the clip of Peter and his friends being chased down the street by reporters and the press conference that had followed. It appeared that Peter was taking it in stride as much as he could considering the circumstances.

Williamson pulled up Peter’s file and began to make a note of his latest finds. He made the necessary notes and was about to close the file when something made him pause. He frowned as he scrolled through the file and his mouth became a thin line when he realised that Peter’s blood sample was missing.

Williamson wasn’t a fool. He knew that when he saw Peter’s blood sample there was something off about it. He didn’t know for sure what it was, but he knew the type of work that Richard and Mary Parker were into and it made his blood boil at the thought that they had done something to an innocent child. He kept it quiet for the moment, seeing no reason to bring it to attention until he knew more.

He pulled up a search to find out who had accessed the file last. 

“Has anyone seen Agent Harper?” Williamson called out across the bullpen.

The computer flashed Harper’s name and photograph along with the date that it had last been accessed. It was the same time that news broke about Peter returning home. The office had been buzzing as their fielded phone calls and it was the perfect opportunity to delete a file without anyone noticing.

“Anyone?” Williamson demanded.

“Is she on leave?” an agent asked. “I haven’t seen her for a couple of days.”

Williamson’s jaw clicked. “You, help me track down Agent Harper now.”

“Sir, what’s going on?” the agent asked, already picking up the phone.

“We have a breach,” Williamson said, picking up his own phone. “Yes, lock down all of Agent Harper’s access codes and any access she has to any files.” He slammed the phone down and pulled up the FBI file they had on Agent Harper.

“What the hell are you up too?” Williamson muttered to himself, staring at the photograph of Agent Harper.


	11. Part 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everybody! 
> 
> Thank you so much for all the amazing feedback and love that you are all giving this story! I cannot express how much it means to me! You are all such amazing readers and I love you all! 
> 
> That being said I have some bad news: my laptop charger broke. I have enough battery power to post this chapter and get a little more writing done BUT there will be a delay in posting the next chapter until I can get a replacement charger. I will get it out as soon as I can though! I am so sorry about this! 
> 
> Apologies for any mistakes and I hope you enjoy!

“It’s fully healed,” Bruce said, eyeing the last x-ray he had taken of Peter’s arm. “Incredible. What should have taken six weeks to heal has only taken you four hours.”

Peter swallowed the mouthful of pizza and grinned. “Pretty cool, right?”

“You had better not have been testing that with Ned,” Tony warned, wiping his fingers on a napkin.

Peter had been starving, his stomach growling loudly so Tony had ordered several pizzas. Pepper had moved to sit on the edge of the bed with Peter, tucking him into her side. Peter didn’t mind and was relieved that Pepper didn’t appear to be angry with him. He still felt guilty about the words he had said and wished that he could take them back. He couldn’t though and so instead he sunk into her warmth and enjoyed the gentle scratch she gave the base of his neck with her fingers.

“No,” Peter immediately said. “We’re not stupid.”

“Debatable,” Tony huffed. “Alright, I’ll bite. What did you two find out about your powers?”

Peter grinned. He had been dying to tell Tony about his powers ever since he learnt that his dad had been designing a suit for him and it was a relief to _finally_ be able to tell him.

“Well, I’m strong,” Peter said, going with the obvious first.

“Yeah, I’ve seen the video of you catching a bus,” Tony huffed.

“Were you hurt at all doing that?” Pepper asked worriedly.

“I was fine,” Peter said. “Just some cuts from the glass but that all healed up fine.”

“Super strength, super healing,” Tony listed. “What else?”

“You have a fast metabolism,” Bruce pointed out with a grin.

“Yeah, how did you know?” Peter asked.

“You ate three pizzas to yourself,” Bruce pointed out. “And I’m sure you could eat more if you wanted too.”

Peter looked to the five empty pizza boxes and blinked. He hadn’t realised that he had eaten that much, and he grinned sheepishly at Pepper. “Oops.”

“Up the grocery list, got it,” Pepper said dryly. “You had better not have been going hungry this whole time.”

Peter shook his head. “No, I haven’t. I promise! Ned and I have a system at school, and I get a sandwich afterwards.”

“We’ll get you a proper diet,” Pepper said.

“Fast metabolism” Tony murmured. “The Tylenol we have you when you had the sensory overload; you said it wouldn’t work.”

“If your metabolism is as fast as I think it is,” Bruce said. “You would burn through any medication way too quickly for it to have any decent effect.”

Peter nodded. “Yeah, last time I took a whole packet and that seemed to only just work.”

“New rule! Bruce is in charge of all your medical needs,” Tony said, and he narrowed his eyes at Peter. “No self-dosing.”

“To be fair, I didn’t have Bruce when I got my powers,” Peter pointed out but withered under the stern stare from both his parents. 

“You have a problem,” Pepper said sternly. “You come to me or your dad. And if we aren’t available, you go to Uncle Rhodey or one of the Avengers.”

“Got it,” Peter nodded. “No self-dosing.” He grinned as Pepper gave him an amused look.

“You made the webs,” Tony said. “Are you using the same formula for the sticking adhesive?”

Peter shifted and his cheeks flushed hot. “Ummm, it’s not an adhesive.”

“Then how do you stick to the walls?” Pepper asked.

“I’m just…sticky,” Peter shrugged. “Here, I’ll show you.” He reached across the bed and stuck his pam to one of the pizza boxes. Then he lifted his hand and gave it a little shake. The pizza box didn’t move.

“Right, sticky,” Tony shook his head.

“Fascinating,” Bruce said, rolling closer on his stool to peer closer at Peter’s fingers. “I wonder… do you think I could have a look at your fingers under a microscope?”

“Not tonight,” Pepper said firmly. “I think it’s time for bed.”

“Sorry, of course,” Bruce backed away.

Peter followed Pepper’s lead and hopped down off the bed. “Thanks for the help Doctor Banner.”

“I didn’t really do anything,” Bruce chuckled. “That was all you but you’re welcome.”

“Thanks Bruce,” Tony said, shaking Bruce’s hand. “Really, I owe you.”

Bruce shook his head. “Nah, anything for you guys.”

Peter allowed Pepper to steer him out of the med bay and towards the lift. He was surprised to find just Rhodey waiting for them, the rest of the Avenger’s nowhere in sight.

“How’s the arm?” Rhodey asked when they reached him.

“All healed,” Peter grinned, lifting up his arm to prove it.

“Super healing,” Tony offered at Rhodey’s confused look. He moved to clap Rhodey on the shoulder. “There’s a whole lot of other weird and wonderful things that Peter can do.”

“I’m not weird,” Peter huffed, putting his arm back down.

“No, you’re not,” Pepper agreed. “If anyone is weird it’s these two.”

“Me?” Rhodey scoffed. “Nuh huh, if anyone is weird it’s him,” he pointed at Tony. “He’s the one with all that shit in his chest.”

“Hey,” Tony frowned. “This shit is keeping me alive and it’s not weird.”

“It’s a little weird,” Pepper wrinkled her nose.

Peter laughed at the wounded look Tony gave her and Peter felt relieved that his secret was out, and he no longer had to hide who he was inside his own home. Still, worried gnawed in the pit of his stomach. Yes, his family now knew about him being Spider-Man but there was still the issue of Ben. He desperately wanted to see the letter that they had been talking about but a part of him didn’t want to see it, didn’t want the proof that Ben had willingly kept him from his parents. He also didn’t want to be the one to tell May.

* * *

May looked between Tony, Pepper and Peter. Happy had driven her over to the tower, the man unusually quiet. Normally she could get him chatting on the ride over, but his answers had been awkward and clipped. She had shrugged it off and happily greeted her nephew who seemed to be a ball of nervous energy. After settling herself down on the living room couch, she finally told him to spit out what was obviously making him worked up.

“You’re joking,” She laughed, uncertainly. “This is a joke. You are not Spider-Man.”

Peter winced, looking down at his lap. “Yeah, I am.”

May looked at all three of them again, the smile fading from her face. “No.”

“I’m afraid it’s not a joke,” Tony said. “Go on, kid. Show her.”

Peter stood up, biting his lip and looked to Pepper who nodded encouragingly. Taking a deep breath, he jumped.

May watched with wide-eyed and slack-jawed as her nephew clung to the ceiling with just his fingers and socked feet.

“Surprise,” Peter half shrugged as he stared down her from the ceiling. “Don’t freak out.”

“Don’t freak out?!” May shouted back, aware of just how hysterical she sounded. “Don’t freak out. Great advice. Would you get down!”

Peter landed lightly on the floor, not even looking remotely red in the face. “Sorry.”

“How long have you been able to do,” May waved her hand about. “That?”

“Nearly eight months,” Peter mumbled.

“EIGHT MONTHS!” May yelled. “Are you kidding me right now?”

“I didn’t want you to worry,” Peter cried, looking at Pepper and Tony.

“Oh no, don’t look at me. You’re on your own,” Tony shook his head.

“This is the reason you had been sneaking out of the house?” May glared.

“You – uh – you knew about that?” Peter winced.

“Yes, Peter, I knew you were sneaking out,” May huffed. “I thought it was you just dealing with Ben and sneaking out to go to Ned’s. I didn’t think it was this!”

“I’m sorry,” Peter said again.

“Did Ben know about this?” May asked, voice clipped with anger.

“No,” Peter shook his head. “Only Ned knew.”

“Of course Ned knows,” May sighed. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I didn’t want you to worry,” Peter said. “You’ve done so much for me and I didn’t want you to freak out because when you freak out, I freak out.”

“Peter, I love you but sometimes you can be a real idiot,” May pinched the bridge of her nose.

Peter looked offended but wisely didn’t say anything.

“Is there any other life shattering news you would like to drop on me this morning?” May asked. “Or is this it?” May wasn’t really expecting an answer but she caught the look that Tony and Pepper shared. “What?”

“You don’t have any heart conditions, do you?” Tony quipped.

“Out with it Stark,” May snapped.

“Aunt May,” Peter's voice was small and hurt. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. 

“Peter?” May asked cautiously.

“May,” Pepper said gently, reaching out to take May’s hands in hers. “As you know, Tony and I have been looking into Mary and Richard. We found a storage unit that held a lot of their research. The unit had Ben listed as a secondary leaser. I’m sorry May but it looks like Ben knew.”

May shook her head. “No, Ben wouldn’t have done that.”

“I’m so sorry May,” Pepper said. “It’s not just the lease though. There was a letter, it was addressed to Peter, for when he turned 18. He knew.’

“He knew?” May whispered painfully, looking to Pepper. “Why would he do this?”

“We’re not sure,” Tony said. “Is there anything you can think of that would make him keep this from you and Peter?”

“I don’t know,” May’s voice shook, and her hands trembled in Pepper’s. She looked to Peter who was looking at his socked feet, mouth pressed tightly together.

“It’s okay,” Pepper said. “It’s a lot to take in at the moment. We can talk more about it later and you can read the letter for yourself”

May nodded, still churning the words over in her mind.

“Why don’t you come with us today,” Pepper said. “We’re heading over to the new Avengers Compound Upstate so we can see exactly what Peter’s powers are. While Tony works with Peter you and I can break in the building with a few drinks.”

“We only stock the good stuff,” Tony added.

“Yeah, okay,” May nodded. “Excuse, I just, I need the bathroom,” she took her hands from Pepper’s and stood. As she passed Peter she gently touched his shoulder before she disappeared down the hall to the bathroom.

* * *

Tony watched as Peter flopped dramatically face down onto the couch and moaned into the cushions.

“She hates me.”

“She doesn’t hate you,” Pepper carded her fingers through the back of his hair. “She loves you. That was a lot of information for her to process.”

Peter lifted his head, face pulled into a wince.

“What is it?” Pepper asked.

“I can hear her crying,” Peter whispered miserably.

“Alright, come on bud,” Tony went to Peter’s side and grabbed his arm, hauling him to his feet. He wrapped an arm around his son’s shoulder, keeping him close. “Let’s give your aunt some privacy.”

“Why don’t you head up to the compound with the Avengers,” Pepper suggested. “Take the jet and I’ll have Happy drive me and May up later.”

“Yeah, okay,” Peter nodded. “Just – don’t let her read the letter without me.”

“I won’t sweetie,” Pepper lifted herself off the couch and crossed to Peter, kissing him on the forehead. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of May.”

Tony leant over and gave Pepper a quick peck on the lips. “Let me know when you are on your way.”

“Be safe you two,” Pepper smiled.

Tony led a still miserable looking Peter to the elevator and pushed him, asking FRIDAY to take them up to the Avengers floor.

“Your aunt is an amazing woman, Pete,” Tony said. “She’ll be okay.”

“We made her cry,” Peter moaned. “That was horrible.”

“Better knowing the truth then being kept in the dark,” Tony said and poked Peter’s side. “A lesson I hope you learnt recently.”

“I did,” Peter nodded, looking properly chastened as he dodged a second poke. 

The door of the lift opened, and they stepped out onto the Avenger’s floor where a flurry of activity was happening.

“Hey,” Steve greeted. “I thought you were joining us later?”

“Thought I’d give Pete the experience of riding in the jet,” Tony said easily. “May and Pepper will join us later.”

“Sounds good,” Steve smiled. “Nat and Clint are bringing the Jet up as we speak. We are already to go if you are.”

“Ummm, Captain America Mr Rogers sir,” Peter blurted out. “I’m really sorry I stole your shield.”

“No hard feelings, Peter,” Steve nodded, still smiling. “and I deserved it. We shouldn’t have –“ he looked at Tony, wincing in apology. “Shouldn’t have tried to knock you out like that.”

Tony’s eye twitched at the thought. “Let’s just never talk about that, shall we?”

Peter nodded enthusiastically and even Steve looked a little relieved at the idea of never speaking of the incident again.

“And kid, you can call me Steve.”

“Okay Mr Steve Sir,” Peter said.

“Good luck with that,” Tony patted Peter on the shoulder. “Come on kid, you’re about to see something amazing.”

Tony gave a smug smile as he walked Peter to the west side of the building, pushing open the door to reveal that the glass walls of the room had been lowered and the Quinjet was hovering mid-air, a ramp acting a bridge between the building and the jet.

“No way,” Peter breathed, eyes wide.

“Pretty amazing, right?” Tony winked.

“Ned’s going to be so pissed he missed this,” Peter said.

* * *

Peter knew that his face was almost touching the glass and he was pretty sure that Sam was laughing at him, but he didn’t care. This was the coolest thing he had ever seen. The new Avengers Compound was a sight to behold and Peter was already planning on how to ask his dad if Ned could come for a visit.

Natasha and Clint landed the jet smoothly on the landing circle and the whirring of the plane slowed down until it was nothing but silence. As the back of the jet opened the ramp came down, Peter pulled himself away from the window and bounded down the ramp, headed titled up as he looked at the building.

“Impressed?” Tony asked, eyes squinting behind his sunglasses.

“Yes,” Peter nodded. “This is – this is very impressive.”

“You can have a tour later,” Tony said, squeezing Peter’ shoulder. “I have something to show you first.”

Peter followed Tony into the building trying to look at everything at once. They passed through hallway after hallway until they were turning into a lab. It was just as impressive as the ones at the tower and much bigger. Peter was eager to explore every inch of it but remained by Tony’s side as he led him over to the far wall.

“Right,” Tony cleared his throat. “I can’t stop you from being Spider-Man BUT I can make sure that you have the proper tools and training, so you don’t get yourself hurt.” He tapped at his watch and Peter’s jaw dropped as the wall clicked open and a completely finished Spider-Man suit was proudly displayed.

“I get the suit?” Peter swallowed, looking at Tony hopefully.

“Your mum and I discussed it last night,” Tony said grudgingly. “You get the suit.”

Peter launched himself at Tony, hugging him tightly. “Thank you!”

Tony patted Peter’s back before gently pulling away. “There is going to be some serious training before you go out in it and I don’t ever want to see that homemade suit again.”

“I was on a budget,” Peter huffed. “It’s really not that bad.”

“Go try it on,” Tony sighed.

Peter let out a little whoop and started to strip out of his jacket. He tossed it on one of the nearby benches, along with his shoes, socks, pants and t-shirt, leaving him in his boxers. He grabbed the suit, slipping into the light material and then grabbed the mask. He slipped it over his head and turned to face Tony.

“It’s a little big,” Peter said, spreading his legs to keep the suit from slipping down.

“Tap your chest,” Tony instructed.

Peter did, letting out a little ‘ _whoa_ ’ as the suit shrunk around his body, sitting snugly. He blinked at the mask adjusted and looked around.

“This is so awesome,” Peter looked at his hands.

“We still have to do some adjustments,” Tony said, eyeing the suit critically. “Especially now that you can tell me about your powers. We can work it into the suit, but it should be okay for today’s training session.”

“I’m training today?” Peter asked.

“Yep,” Tony grinned wickedly. “Time to go test out the new gym.”

* * *

May took a hearty gulp of the wine Pepper had poured for her. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome,” Pepper said, pouring her own glass.

The two of them had driven up with Happy to the new compound. May had been silent on the ride up but Pepper had filled the silence with Happy, going over her schedule for the upcoming week, giving her the time to shift through her thoughts. When they had arrived, Pepper had led May to the large communal area and opened up a bottle, pouring them each a drink.

They settled on the couches, Happy having disappeared eagerly.

“May!”

Pepper and May turned to see Peter running towards her, dressed in a red and blue suit that was definitely not the handmade one he had been running around in, a mask dangling from his hands. He had a huge grin on his face, and he was hot and sweaty. Tony was following behind at a much slower pace, tapping away at Stark Tablet. Peter vaulted over the edge of the couch, landing lightly beside May.

“You’re here.”

May smiled. “We made it.”

“Are you okay?” Peter asked worriedly.

“I’m… confused,” May finally settled on. She gestured at her glass. “This is helping a little with the shock. Nice suit.”

“Dad made it,” Peter grinned. “It’s awesome!”

“It’s not finished,” Tony said, finally joining them. He sunk down next to Pepper, giving her leg an appreciative glance over. “I’ve got some major adjustments to make.”

“Why don’t you tell me about them,” Pepper said, picking up her glass and standing, giving Tony a pointed look.

“Right,” Tony grunted as he stood back up again. “You two can’t drink on an empty stomach after all.”

May shook her head as the two wandered away and turned to focus on Peter.

“Are you really okay?” Peter asked quietly.

“While I’m not a huge fan of this,” May waved her hand over Peter’s suit. “I know there is no stopping you. I’m really proud of everything you’ve done.”

Peter’s shoulders relaxed at her words and she hated the tension that was sitting on his shoulders.

“And Ben?” Peter asked.

May sighed heavily. “That is something I’m still working on.”

“He loved us,” Peter said quietly.

“He did,” May agreed. “Very much. I just, I’m not sure why he would do this but maybe this could give us some clarity.” She held up the letter that Pepper had given her earlier.

“Have you read it?”

“Not yet,” May said. “I wanted us to do this together.”

Peter nodded, shifting closer to May’s side.

“No matter what this letter says,” May said. “I love you and I am so sorry about all of this.”

“I love you too,” Peter said.

With a shaking hand, May opened the letter, smoothing it across her lap. It was old, the paper yellowing with age, the creases deeply set. There was no date written, only the following words;

_Dear Peter,_

_First off, Happy 18 th Birthday. If you are reading this then I am no longer with you. I wish I never had to write this letter and I really hope that I am there, so I never have to give it to you. There are some things, however, that I cannot let die with me if anything was to happen._

_The day we took you in was one of the happiest and saddest days of my life. You are the greatest nephew an uncle could ever ask for and as you grow, I can see that you are going to be a great young man. You’re incredibly smart and can do anything you put your mind to. I hope you never lose your curiosity as I know you will achieve great things._

_There is a reason why I am writing this letter. Tonight, your aunt and I came across a real possibility of losing you. I am not afraid to tell you that this was one of the scariest things I have been through. I cannot bear to think of ever losing you or May. You are the greatest loves I have in this world. It is why I must keep who you really are to myself._

_But now you are 18. There are new choices and responsibilities that you have as a young man. You are not really a Parker. I have only recently found this out for myself and it horrifies me what my brother has done. You, Peter, are the son of Pepper and Tony Stark. It is up to you if you wish to get to know those who brought you into this world. I only hope that you will remember me with fondness. I’m sorry I kept this from you for so long, not even May knows what I have found out. You have already been through so much and I just wanted you to keep you safe and have a normal, if such a thing is possible, childhood._

_I love you, with all my heart and I am deeply sorry but please remember that I did this to protect you._

_All my heart,_

_Ben._

“Oh Ben,” May whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks. “What did you do?”

“He knew,” Peter whispered painfully. “He – he wasn’t going to tell us until I was eighteen.”

“God, Peter I’m so sorry,” May wrapped her arms around Peter, pulling him tightly into her body.

Peter returned the hug and she felt hot tears on her neck as his body shuddered. “Why would he do this?”

“I don’t know,” May whispered and hugged Peter tightly.

They stayed like that, the words Ben had written churning over and over in their minds. Hurt settled deeply in May’s heart. How could Ben have kept something like this from her? All those years they had been married and he never mentioned that Peter wasn’t legally theirs. He had willingly kept Peter away from Tony and Pepper. Something had scared Ben so much that he had kept Peter for all those years.

“The Stark Expo,” May murmured.

Peter pulled back, tears rolling down his cheek.

“The Stark Expo,” May repeated. “We nearly lost you that night.” She turned and across the distance she found Pepper and Tony in the kitchen. Tony’s hands were waving around as he spoke, and Pepper listened with an amused smile on her face.

May stood and walked over to them, Peter trailing after her.

“What are you talking about?” Peter asked.

May didn’t answer. Instead she headed to the kitchen, quickly gaining the attention of Pepper and Tony.

“May?” Pepper asked, face creasing with worry.

“You’ve read this?” May asked.

Both nodded.

“I think,” May started, shaking her head in an attempt to get some clarity. “I think I know why Ben did this. He talked about nearly losing Peter.”

“Yes,” Tony nodded. “We weren’t sure but from what else we have found out we reckon Peter must have been about eight.”

“He was,” May said. “When Peter was eight, we took him to Stark’s Expo.”

“Oh,” Peter blinked. “The one’s where the robots attacked.”

Tony and Pepper both cried, “You were there?”

“Ben and I decided to take Peter,” May explained. “Like I said, he was obsessed with you. It was actually Ben’s idea. We didn’t have enough money to get good tickets, but Ben pulled a couple of extra shifts to get enough to take Peter. He was adamant that we take him.”

“You think he was going to tell us there,” Pepper realised.

“Yes,” May nodded. “But those robots attacked. Peter was wearing one of those Iron Man masks that we had gotten him and the little gloves with the,” May made the motion of a circle on her palm. “that glowed. One of the bots, it landed in front of Peter and Ben and I were too far away. The crowd had separated us.”

“I blasted it,” Peter murmured. “Or I believed I did. You were behind me and you said, ‘good job kid’.”

“That was you?” Tony demanded, face pale. “You were right there.”

“I had never seen Ben so scared,” May shook her head. “We both were. We got out of there as soon as we could. Peter wasn’t harmed, he was excited about the whole thing. I got Peter ready for bed because Ben said he had to step out. I thought he just needed some time to process.”

“But he was writing this letter,” Pepper said.

“I don’t know what he was thinking,” May sniffed. “But you saved your son that night. He had no right to keep Peter away from you. I’m sorry.”

May took Peter’s hand, giving a squeeze and felt relief when he squeezed it back.


	12. Part 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who got a charger?! 
> 
> It's me! 
> 
> Thank you so much everyone for your kinds words and love for this story! I am so sorry it had taken me this long to get back to you all! I had to wait for pay day and then had to finish writing the chapter as I didn't get the chance to finish it before my laptop died on me. But I'm back and can't thank you enough for all your patience. 
> 
> I won't ramble on for any longer so apologies for any mistake and I hope you enjoy!

“Wait so Ben knew?” Ned asked as he sat down next to Peter at the back of the classroom. “And he never said anything?”

“He wasn’t going to either,” Peter mumbled angrily. “At least not until I turned 18.”

“Wow,” Ned said. “Hey, did you hear that we are going to be partnered up for a project?”

Peter smiled gratefully at Ned. All weekend his parents and May had wanted to talk about Ben, but Peter just wanted to forget about it for the moment. He wasn’t sure how he was supposed to feel. On one hand he loved Ben and missed him terribly but on the other he was so mad that he had kept this from him. It was enough to drive him crazy and make him irritable, snapping at the people who were only trying to help.

“We are?” Peter asked, jumping at the chance for a change in conversation.

Ned nodded as the teacher called for their attention.

“Alright class,” the teacher called. “Today we will be splitting into pairs to work on your next chemistry project which will count towards 40% of your grade. I’ve already designated the pairs –“

Peter and Ned pouted at one another.

“So, when I call out your names, go sit with one another.”

Peter crossed his fingers under the desk that he got Ned. As the teacher begun to call out the pairs, Peter’s heart began to drop inside his chest until finally -

“Betty and Ned,” the teacher called out.

“Sorry, Peter,” Ned said, not looking that sorry as he shuffled over to Betty’s bench and slid into the stool beside her.

“Peter and Flash.”

Peter moaned silently and picked up his bags and shuffled over to where Flash was sitting. Ever since the media fiasco the two of them had come to a silent agreement. Flash was no longer calling him Penis in the hallways (though Peter suspected that he was trying to come up with something new. Penis Stark didn’t have the same ring to it) and they had been somewhat civil to each other.

“I’ll be coming around with the project brief,” the teacher said, picking up a stack of papers. “I want you to read through them and choose one of the topics listed on the page to base your project around. You will have this class to start planning it out.”

Peter and Flash sat in silence while the teacher walked around the room handing out the project brief. Peter caught Ned’s sympathetic look from across the room and he gave a small grimace in return before Ned’s attention was pulled back to Betty. Finally, the teacher dropped the brief on their desk, giving each of them a stern look before continuing on.

“If we have to work on this outside of class,” Flash said. “We’re doing it at your house.”

“Fine,” Peter muttered, not wanting to fight. “But you have to help. I’m not doing this on my own.”

“Please,” Flash scoffed. “As if I’d trust you to do this on your own.”

Peter rolled his eyes and started pulling out his notebook.

Flash sighed angrily and through gritted said, “I can’t afford to not get top marks on this.”

Peter blinked and turned to stare at Flash. “Who are you and what have you done with Flash Thompson?”

Flash turned and glared at him. “My dad is riding me about my grades. I can’t afford not to do well in this class.”

“Oh,” Peter blinked at Flash’s honesty, not expecting it from the boy who had attempted to make his schooling so miserable.

“Don’t think about telling anyone,” Flash leaned in close. “Just because you’re a Stark now doesn’t make you not a loser anymore.”

“I’m not going to tell,” Peter said quietly.

“Good,” Flash huffed. “We should do the first one – Show and explain the reaction between two chemicals and how they could be used in everyday life.”

“Sure,” Peter nodded. “What two chemicals do you want to use?”

For the rest of the class the two of them worked together to put together an outline for their project. Flash was smart, when he wasn’t being a dick and the two of them managed to come up with something tangible by the end of the class. When the bell rang, Flash packed up his things. “Start researching the chemicals and what they are used for and I’ll start the introduction to our report. We will start putting the report together next class.” Then he was out the door before Peter could put in any input.

“Dude, you lived,” Ned said when Peter met him by the door.

“I did,” Peter nodded. “Flash was… not his usual self.”

“Do you think he’s dying?” Ned asked as they started walking to their next class, dodging through the sea of students who were doing the same. 

Peter shook his head with a laugh. “No, Ned. He isn’t dying.”

Ned shrugged. “Something has to be wrong if Flash isn’t being his usual self. Maybe the media got him. Do you think he’s spying on you?”

“Do you know how much trouble Flash would be in if he was caught spying on me?” Peter asked. “No way would Flash risk the wrath of mum and dad.”

“True,” Ned said and his eyes widened comically. “Imagine Iron Man coming after you.”

“Imagine mum,” Peter shuddered.

“Hey losers,” MJ greeted them as they joined her at her desk in their next classroom.

“Hey,” Peter greeted, pulling out his English book.

“Maybe Flash is a clone,” Ned said, eyes widening. “Maybe it’s an alien using Flash’s body to gather intel.”

“Why would an alien infiltrate a high school?” MJ asked. “Wouldn’t it make more sense for them to overtake the government first.”

“Valid point,” Ned deflated.

“Why do you think Flash is a clone?” MJ asked.

“Peter got partnered with him in chemistry,” Ned explained. 

MJ peered closely at Peter and seemed satisfied with what she saw before she opened up her notebook and picked up her pen and started drawing.

* * *

“Agent Williamson,” Tony greeted, trade-mark, press conference smile on his face. “Welcome to Stark Industries.”

“Thanks for meeting me here,” Williamson nodded, settling on one of the seats in Pepper’s office.

“What exactly is this meeting about?” Pepper asked. “You were a little vague over the phone.”

“Sorry about that,” Williamson apologised. “This wasn’t something I could discuss with you over the phone.”

“Has this got something to do with Peter?” Tony asked as he took a seat himself. The camera ready smile was gone and he was replaced with a softer look that Williamson had begun to see over the years.

“It does. I know that you have been looking into Richard and Mary Parker,” Williamson said. “I’d be stupid to think that you weren’t.”

“We have been,” Pepper agreed slowly.

“I also assume that you have found something because anything to do with Ben Parker seems to be vanishing anytime I try to look into it,” Williamson said, his tone disapproving.

“There’s no need to look into Ben,” Tony said, his face carefully blank. “We have learnt everything we need to from there.”

Williamson nodded once. “I’d appreciate it if you could send over your findings so I can officially close that part of the investigation.” 

“We’ll send it over to you,” Pepper nodded, making a note on her computer. 

“There is something you need to be made aware of. Peter’s blood sample from his file has been deleted and has gone missing from the FBI.”

Tony and Pepper shared a look. “It was stolen?”

“I went through the file to see who was the last to access it. Agent Harper was the one who deleted it and has since not shown up for work. I’m in the process of tracking her now,” Williamson shifted in his chair. “I know the type of work Richard and Mary were into and I’m aware that they may have experimented on Peter, causing something about him to change though I don’t understand the extent of it.”

“How well do you know this Agent Harper?” Tony asked, grabbing the tablet off Pepper’s desk and tapping at it quickly.

“This was the first time I was working with her,” Williamson said. “She has been at the FBI for six years and has been working on other kidnapping cases but was never assigned to Peter’s until after he was found to help with the investigation.”

“She asked for it herself?” Tony asked.

“No,” Williamson said. “I asked for her. She had a good record and thought she would be an asset.”

“When did you notice the blood sample missing?” Pepper asked, her own fingers flying across her keyboard.

“Last night,” Williamson said. “I’ve got the rest of my team trying to track her down as we speak but thought you should be aware that she may potentially be going after Peter.”

“Thank you for telling us,” Pepper nodded.

“Let me be clear,” Williamson said. “You find her then she is to be brought to the FBI. She is our agent and our responsibility.”

Neither Pepper nor Tony made any sort of motion of agreement.

Williamson sighed. “At least call me if you find her.”

“We will,” Pepper agreed.

“I have to get back to work,” Williamson stood to his feet. “Just one more question.”

“Yes?” Tony prompted.

“Peter’s blood sample…is he sick?” Williamson asked.

“No,” Tony said. “But it is complicated.”

Williamson nodded and did up the middle of his suit jacket. “I’m in your corner. Remember that.” He nodded at them and headed to the door, pulling out his phone to make a call to the office for an update.

* * *

“I’m running her through our system,” Pepper said as soon as Agent Williamson had left her office.

“I’ve already sent an update to Steve,” Tony said. “FRIDAY, update all security protocols. Nobody gets into the building without us knowing, clear?”

“Clear Boss,” FRIDAY answered.

Pepper shook her head, sinking back into her chair. She held her hands over her eyes as she breathed deeply through her nose.

“I’m not going to let anything happen to him, Pep,” Tony said.

Pepper removed her hands and saw that her husband had stood and was now perched on the edge of her desk by her side.

“I know,” she said and hated that her voice was watery. “Peter’s _fifteen_. He should be worried about his body changing and girls, not about his identity being discovered or worried about being kidnapped for a second time.”

“I can see you blaming yourself and I want you to stop,” Tony said firmly, surprising Pepper. She always forgot how good Tony was at reading her. While everyone saw a self-centred eccentric man with no regard for anyone but himself (and once upon a time he had been) she knew that was not the case. “This is no way a reflection of us as parents.”

“What if Ben was right?” Pepper asked quietly, the words tasting bitter and wrong on her tongue.

“He was wrong,” Tony all but growled. “He never should have kept Peter from us. _We_ are his parents and _we_ would never let any harm come to him.”

Pepper mentally scolded herself. This is exactly what Obadiah had wanted when he had taken Peter. Wanted them to question themselves as parents, wanted to rattle them and throw them off their game so he could swoop down and take what was theirs. He was dead now and she refused to let this Agent Harper do the same.

“You’re right. I don’t know why I said that. Peter’s _our_ son and we will not let this Agent Harper get her hands on him.”

Tony nodded and hopped off the desk. “I’m going to meet with Steve and we are going to make a plan.”

Pepper nodded, standing up and giving her husband a kiss. “I’ll call Happy and give him a heads up on everything. Then I’ll speak to May.”

“You think it’s best to tell her now?” Tony asked.

Pepper had been reluctant for May to leave the tower when Peter had gone back to school after learning the news about Ben. May was still coming to grips with it and it would be some time before she would be able to come to terms with what her husband had done. May had assured her that she needed some time to herself and would be fine. Pepper was reluctant to add yet another thing to May’s plate, that her nephew was in danger of either being exposed as being Spider-Man or something much sinister was in the works.

“She deserves to know that her nephew might be in danger,” Pepper said.

“Your call,” Tony said. “What are we going to tell Peter?”

“We have to tell him,” Pepper said. “Keeping information from him last time didn’t do us any favours. We will tell him together, tonight.”

“Love you,” Tony said, kissing Pepper lightly on the lips. “Peter’s going to be okay. We won’t let anything happen to him.”

Pepper smiled and watched her husband leave but couldn’t stop the sinking feeling in her chest that they would fail their son once again.

* * *

Agent Elizabeth Harper sat low in her car, watching the entrance of Midtown School of Science and Technology. It was the first time she had parked in front of the school, her training with the FBI making it easy to spot that the school was not under surveillance yet. If the FBI hadn’t already discovered that she had deleted Peter’s blood sample from his file then they would soon. Agent Williamson was one of the best agents the FBI had and it wouldn’t be long before he discovered the truth.

A sleek black car pulled up to the front of the school and Harper jotted down the number plate in her notepad. Harper watched the car for ten minutes, a driver sitting patiently in the front seat. She heard the school bell ring in the distance and she watched the flood of students that came pouring out of the school. She didn’t immediately see him, but soon enough a familiar face appeared.

Peter Parker.

He wasn’t alone, flanked by two other children that she had already researched; Michelle Jones and Ned Leeds. According to every news outlet and several Instagram posts, these were his two friends. She didn’t see the third boy from the media story and made a note of that. They stayed with him all the way up to the car before Peter was waving them off and slipping into the car. The car didn’t wait before it was pulling into the flow of traffic.

Harper stayed where she was, watching the car until it faded from a distance. Though she couldn’t see anyone watching her, she didn’t want to draw any suspicion. She would follow another day. She needed to know Peter Parker’s routine thoroughly before she kidnapped him.

* * *

Peter and Happy stepped off the elevator and Peter immediately headed to the kitchen to get himself a snack. His stomach had been rumbling since he got in the car much to Happy’s apparent annoyance. At first Peter was sure that the man hadn’t liked him but grew to understand that his gruff nature was just a front and that he really was just a softy underneath the hard exterior he presented. Peter was determined to get a smile out of the man one day.

“Can I get you anything?” Peter asked Happy who had pulled out his phone and was tapping out a message on it.

“No thanks,” Happy said. “Tony says to do your homework.”

“Where is dad?” Peter asked, stretching his hearing but couldn’t hear any signs that his dad was home. He reached into the fridge and pulled out the sandwich Pepper had promised would be waiting for him after school. He grinned, taking off the wrapping and immediately bit into it.

“Out,” Happy said.

“Oh,” Peter frowned, chewing slowly and then swallowing. “And mum?”

“Working,” Happy grunted, settling down at the kitchen bench.

“What are you doing?” Peter asked, cocking his head as he looked at Happy.

“I’m sitting down, what does it look like I’m doing?” Happy asked, glancing up briefly from his phone to give Peter a flat look.

“You never sit down with me,” Peter pointed out. “You always kick me out of the car when you take me home. The only times you come up are when mum and dad are home or Aunt May is here.”

“Your point?” Happy asked.

“Are you babysitting me right now?” Peter asked, looking wide-eyed at Happy.

“I don’t babysit,” Happy said deadpanned.

“You are watching me though, right?” Peter pointed at Happy.

“Do your homework,” Happy grunted, ignoring Peter’s question.

Peter stared at Happy, mouth open but the man refused to look at him. Narrowing his eyes, Peter huffed, took another bite out of his sandwich and pulled out his schoolwork.

* * *

Tony stepped out onto their floor and paused as he took in the scene in front of him.

Happy was sitting unperturbed at the kitchen bench, tablet in hand while Peter hung upside down from the ceiling, math directly under him as he punched in numbers into his calculator before reaching down and writing the answer in his notebook. Tony watched the scene for several seconds, eyes flicking between the two who seemed to be in a comfortable routine.

“You had better be showing your working,” Tony said finally, stepping into the kitchen.

“Dad!” Peter grinned at him. “Maybe you can tell me.”

“Tell you what?” Tony hummed, going for the coffee machine.

“Why Happy is acting like a babysitter,” Peter said.

“Not a babysitter,” Happy grumbled.

“Why did you ask Happy to watch me?” Peter asked.

“Didn’t want you to come home to an empty tower,” Tony shrugged, keeping his face blank and his voice casual. “None of the Avengers are in right now.”

“Oh,” Peter placed his calculator down, looking slightly disappointed. At least, Tony thought he was, it was hard to tell when he was upside down.

“Why are you hanging upside down?” Tony asked, pouring his coffee into a mug and taking a sip.

Peter shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“He wouldn’t stop fidgeting,” Happy looked up from his tablet. “This is the most settled he's been since we got here.”

“Not true!” Peter defended.

“Right well I’m feeling light headed just looking at you so could you sit upright please?” Tony asked.

Peter flipped himself upwards before swinging on the web and landing lightly in front of Tony. “Why is everybody out? Is there a mission? Can I go? I promise I’m ready!”

Tony shook his head, giving his son an amused smile. Though he was far from amused. While Wanda and Vision had elected to stay at the Compound and Scott had returned to San Francisco, the rest were spread out across New York and Queens looking for any leads on Agent Harper. Steve, Clint and Natasha had headed to the FBI to speak with Agent Williamson while Rhodey and Sam were using their connections to see if anyone could give them any information on the woman prior to the FBI. Bruce was on his own field trip to OSCORP to see if he could get any further with Richard and Mary’s research while Thor was still off world. 

Tony already had FRIDAY running a search for anything she could find. Tony didn’t want to admit it but he was nervous. He wasn’t sure why Agent Harper had taken Peter’s blood sample but if Agent Williamson had been able to see that there was something strange about Peter’s blood then it was safe to assume that Harper had as well.

He didn’t want to tell Peter. His son already had some much to deal with. Ever since learning about Ben he had been irritable, as it was to be expected. He was refusing to talk about it, despite their best efforts. If they pushed too hard Peter would retreat to his room or the ceiling where they couldn’t bother him.

“There is no mission, kid,” Tony said. “and no, you’re not ready. You’ll be ready when you can pin Natasha to the ground.”

“As if she would let me live after I did,” Peter rolled his eyes. “Can I go out patrolling?”

“No,” Tony immediately countered and he internally winced at the frustration that appeared on Peter’s face.

“Why not?”

“I haven’t finished the updates on your suit,” Tony said, which wasn’t a lie. “And you aren’t going out in that homemade onesie.”

“I was doing fine in it before I had the suit,” Peter huffed. “You promised me that I could still be Spider-Man.”

“And I am keeping my promise,” Tony sighed. “The suit just isn’t ready yet. I want you safe, kid.”

To his relief, Peter sighed and the fight seemed to leave his body. “I’ve finished my homework. Can we work on it now?”

“Has he really finished his homework?” Tony asked Happy.

“He’s all yours,” Happy said.

“You want to come to the lab too?” Peter asked, gathering up his homework and slipping it back into his backpack. “I can show you my suit! You haven’t seen it yet.”

“I have work to do,” Happy said deadpanned.

“Come on Hap, throw the kid a bone,” Tony smirked. He knew that Happy was putting on a show. Like everyone else who had met Peter, they had completely fallen under his spell. Tony had no doubt that Happy would do anything for Peter. Hell, he hadn’t even asked Happy to stay with Peter this afternoon, had only asked that he made sure Peter got inside the building okay. His head of security had stayed with him all on his own.

Before leaving Pepper’s office he had made sure that FRIDAY had updated their protocols so there was no way that Agent Harper could slip in unnoticed by anyone. Never again would he let his child be taken from right underneath him again.

“Fine,” Happy relented. “One hour.”

“Yes!” Peter almost squealed. “You’re going to love it!”

“Alright, school bag away and go change your clothes,” Tony instructed and watched with a fond smile as his son all but sprinted down the hallway to his room.

“You going to tell him?” Happy asked, once they heard the sounds of Peter’s door closing.

“Keep your voice low,” Tony warned. “I’m still not sure how far he can hear from. And we will when Pepper gets home tonight.”

“He deserves to know if someone is after him,” Happy said.

“Yeah and look what keeping stuff from him got us last time,” Tony grunted, leading Happy towards his lab. “We are going to tell him.”

“I haven’t found anything yet,” Happy said. “Just her standard FBI file and there is nothing you haven’t already seen.”

Tony nodded, frustration building up in his chest. They entered the lab, FRIDAY bringing everything to life and he instructed her to pull out Peter’s suit. He had it laid out on the bench by the time Peter came bounding into the room, a bright grin on his face.

“Have you told Happy anything yet?” Peter asked.

“Nope, take it away kid,” Tony winked and kept his laughter to himself at Happy’s disgruntled look.

Tony let his son’s voice wash over him as his kid rapidly started explaining the suit to Happy. He puttered about, gathering together the tools they would need and bringing up the blueprints for the suit.

* * *

To Peter's happiness, Happy asked questions and got involved in the discussion and even sat down at the bench as Tony and Peter started making changes to the suit, starting with the gloves that did not need a place for an adhesive but rather the fabric needed to be thinner so Peter’s natural stickiness could penetrate through.

He felt a wave of giddiness as he could see that Happy was impressed with the suit and he couldn’t wait until it was ready so he could show Happy exactly what he could do.

“Hey boys,” Pepper gained all their attention as she entered the lab.

“Hi mum,” Peter beamed. “How was work?”

“Busy as always,” Pepper said as she came up to Peter and kissed his temple. “How was school?”

Peter shrugged. “We have a new chemistry project to start. We have to do it with a partner.”

“Are you working with Ned?” Pepper asked.

“No,” Peter shook his head. “We got partnered up by the teacher. I’m with Flash.” Peter still wasn’t sure if this was a good thing or not.

“Sounds interesting,” Pepper said. “Steve cooked dinner and has invited us to join so pack this up and we can go eat.”

“Steve can cook?” Peter asked, obeying his mother and started gathering up the tools to put them away.

“Surprisingly yes,” Tony answered, gathering up the suit and placing it on the steel mannequin and getting FRIDAY to put it to bed. “I hope it’s that thing with the chicken.”

“Happy, are you joining us for dinner?” Pepper asked.

“Yes, thank you _Pepper_ for inviting me,” Happy said, side eyeing Tony. 

“How come when I invite you to dinner you are always busy?” Peter frowned but was delighted that Happy would be joining them. He would get his smile by the end of the night, even if it killed him.


	13. Part 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! 
> 
> Thank you so much for the love! I am so happy to be back! I'm so glad that you are excited that I'm back! I felt very missed and am so happy that so many of you were eagerly awaiting a new chapter! 
> 
> Apologies for any mistakes in here and I hope you all enjoy!

When Peter stepped off the elevator onto the Avengers floor he was immediately assaulted by delicious aromas. His stomach rumbled and he licked his lips, letting his nose lead him to the kitchen.

“That smells great,” Peter said as he entered the kitchen, eyeing Steve who stood at the stove, numerous pots on the burner and something cooking in the oven. He wondered if this was the chicken that his dad seemed really excited about. 

“Thanks,” Steve tossed a grin over his shoulder. “I hope you are hungry because there is going to be plenty.”

“I’m always hungry,” Peter grinned. “Is there anything I can do to help?”

“No, go relax,” Steve instructed, turning back to his pots. “It shouldn’t be too long. I think Clint and Sam were going to play some video games.”

Peter shrugged, trying not to look too eager to join Sam and Clint on the couch . “If you’re sure.”

“Go,” Steve laughed though not un-kindly. 

Peter bounded into the living room where the others were grouped and drifted over to the TV where Clint was starting to set up Mario Kart.

“Hey kid, you want to race?” Clint asked, tossing him a controller.

Catching it easily, Peter grinned and settled on the couch beside the older man. “Are you ready to get your butt kicked?”

“You can try,” Clint shrugged. “But I’m the champion of this game.”

“Game on,” Peter grinned, scooting to the edge of the couch and placing both feet on the ground.

“My money is on the kid,” Sam said, sitting down beside Clint.

“You’ve got this Peter,” Bruce said, coming to sit next to Peter.

Peter grinned at Sam and Bruce and hurried to choose his favourite player (Peach) before they were choosing a course and the race began. Clint was a formidable opponent but Peter had much better reflexes and had spent countless hours with Ned playing Mario Kart and finding every possible shortcut and combo that boosted Peter securely into first place.

“How?” Clint blinked at the screen as Peach spun and pouted at the camera in victory while Clint’s Yoshi danced in celebration for second place. Peter grinned smugly, easing back into the cushions with his hands behind his neck.

“Tough break man,” Sam patted Clint on the back.

Clint looked over his shoulder and then jerked his chin at Peter. “Another round.”

“Peter, can you come help set the table,” Pepper called.

“Next time,” Peter grinned, jumping up and tossing the controller at Clint who fumbled to catch it. He bounded over to the table where Pepper was waiting with a stack of cutlery and he picked up the pile and started setting it out around the table.

“Think we distracted him long enough for Tony to take a look at the updated info on Harper”

Peter paused mid-movement as Clint’s words. They were whispered, obviously not meant for his ears. They were distracting him? Had they only played a game with Peter to distract him? And who was Harper?

“Peter?” Pepper asked, gaining his attention. “You okay?”

“Who’s Harper?” Peter asked.

Pepper’s eyes darted to Clint and Sam, her eyes narrowing into a glare.

“Uh guys,” Bruce said, shaking his head and jerking his head in the direction of Pepper’s glare said, “You appear to have forgotten that Peter has super hearing.”

Clint and Sam looked winced. “Sorry Pepper.”

“Idiots,” Pepper shook her head, turning her attention back to her son. “We were going to tell you after dinner.”

“Tell me what?” Peter asked, eyes narrowing. He looked around the room and saw that Clint was right, his dad wasn’t in the room. “Where’s dad?”

“He’s in the lab with Natasha,” Pepper said. “She was updating him with some information about Agent Harper. She’s an FBI agent who was working on your case.”

“She questioned my Aunt,” Peter remembered. “What happened to her?”

“She hasn’t turned up to work for a few days and your blood sample is missing from the FBI. It looks like she has taken it,” Pepper explained, gently taking the cutlery from Peter. She pushed him gently down into the nearest seat and took the one beside him.

“Why would she take my blood?” Peter frowned.

“Your blood shows up differently to that of a normal blood sample,” Bruce explained as he walked over to them. “There are markers that show a mutation.”

As Bruce’s words sunk in, Peter shot an alarmed look at his mother. “Wait – does she know that I’m Spider-Man?”

“It’s possible,” Pepper said. She reached out and took Peter’s hands in hers. “It’s okay, we are working on finding her and won’t let anything happen to you.”

“What if she tells someone?!” Peter cried. “Mum, what do we do?”

“It’s okay,” Pepper soothed but panic was slowly taking over Peter. “Hey, breathe sweetheart it’s going to be fine. We won’t let her get away with it. Everyone in this room is helping to track her down.”

“We’ll get her, Peter,” Rhodey said and Peter turned to find his Uncle right behind him. He put his hand on Peter’s shoulder and squeezed it tightly. “You don’t have to worry about that.”

“If she’s had the blood sample that long,” Sam asked. “Why hasn’t she exposed Peter yet?”

“Maybe she doesn’t have enough proof,” Rhodey shrugged. “All the blood would prove is that Richard and Mary Parker experimented on Peter. It wouldn’t exactly sway the public to her side.”

“Whatever the reason,” Pepper said, looking Peter in the eye. “She won’t get away with it.”

Peter nodded, trying to take comfort in his mother's certainty but couldn’t shake the feeling that he had stuffed up yet again.

“Hey,” Pepper gently cupped his face. “No blaming yourself. This isn’t your fault.”

“She has _my_ blood. How isn’t that my fault,” Peter asked miserably. “All I’ve done is stuffed up since I came home.”

“Peter Stark you have not stuffed up,” Pepper said firmly. “None of this is your fault, okay. None of it. I’m sorry everything has been so difficult lately but it’s not your fault.”

“Okay,” Peter whispered and his eyes fluttered shut when Pepper kissed him on the forehead. 

“Let’s finish setting the table and have some dinner,” Pepper pulled back and smiled softly at Peter. 

Nodding, Peter got to his feet as his mum did. He bit his lip as he continued to set the table but couldn’t help but feel that this was all his fault and had brought nothing but trouble to his parents.

* * *

“What did you find out?” Tony asked as he and Natasha entered the lab.

“Harper’s record appears clean but it’s too clean,” Natasha said. “There’s nothing before she started before the FBI. Whoever this woman is, she did a good job in clearing her tracks.”

“We are better,” Tony said firmly. There was nothing that was going to stop him from finding this woman and putting an end to this whole kidnapping saga.

“We are,” Natasha agreed. “Which is why I was able to find that before Harper went into the FBI she was working on getting a degree in microbiology.”

“Would you look at that,” Tony hummed as he looked at the file Natasha has spread out across the open bench.

“She got her degree but then disappeared for a year. The same year that Richard and Mary Parker passed away. When she next popped up she was training to become an FBI agent.”

“You think she knew Mary and Richard?” Tony asked.

“I would say it could be a coincidence,” Natasha said. “But when it comes to Peter there are none. It’s possible she was working with them but it doesn’t explain why she would join the FBI and go into the dealing with kidnapping cases. She would have known that Peter had gone to May and Ben.”

“Then what the hell is her role in this?” Tony asked, hands curling into fists and he rubbed his thumbs over his knuckles. 

“That is what we are going to find out,” Natasha said. “We will find her.”

“Yeah,” Tony locked eyes with Natasha. “I just want my kid to be safe, that’s all.”

“Peter is the most protected kid in the country and personally has the Avengers looking out for him,” Natasha smirked. “I almost feel sorry for Harper. She had no idea what’s she’s in for.”

Tony snorted but grinned at Natasha.

“Come on,” Natasha closed the file. “Dinner should be nearly ready and I for one would like some before your son’s metabolism devours it all.”

Tony laughed and the two of them left the lab. When they entered the common room, the tension in the air was not something he was expecting.

Steve was serving up dinner, Bruce helping while Clint and Sam were pouring drinks. Pepper, Rhodey and Peter sat at one end of the table and were not wearing the smiles that Tony was expecting to see. Pepper and Rhodey were sharing a worried look while Peter’s eyes were trained firmly on his phone as his thumb constantly flicked in an upwards motion over the screen.

“Sorry,” Clint apologised as started carrying a pitcher of water over to the table. “I forgot that Peter has super hearing.”

Tony groaned. “Nice one Bird Brain.”

“It’s not his fault,” Peter said, not looking up from his phone.

Tony wandered over to his son, kissing the top of his head. “This is not how we wanted you to find out. We were going to sit you down and talk about it.”

“Mum said that,” Peter said and finally looked up from his phone.

“You okay?” Tony asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Peter mumbled, clicking his phone off and sliding it into his pocket.

“Alright, dinners ready,” Steve said.

Natasha helped Steve bring over several plates to the table and everyone started to dish up. While conversation started up around the table it wasn’t their usual volume as everyone could feel the quietness coming from Peter. The boy would usually be bouncing in his seat, eagerly participating in the conversation but instead he was sitting low in his seat, shovelling food into his mouth and avoiding everyone’s gazes.

“You want some more?” Tony asked when he noticed that Peter’s plate was empty and he was absentmindedly pushing his fork across the plate.

“No thank you,” Peter said quietly. “Can I be excused? There's some homework I forgot about.”

“Yeah, kid. That’s fine. Want some help?” Tony asked.

Peter shook his head. “I’ll just be in my room. Promise.”

“Alright,” Tony said and he could only watch helplessly as Peter pushed back his chair and stood.

“Thank you for dinner, Mr. Steve Sir,” Peter said, directing the table rather than the super soldier.

“You’re welcome, Peter,” Steve nodded, unable to keep the concern off his face.

“Night,” Peter mumbled and he turned and hurried out of the room, disappearing into the elevator.

Tony sighed and tossed his fork onto the plate with a clatter. “Nice one guys.”

“We’re sorry,” Sam said. “We forgot about the super hearing.”

“Yeah, that’s getting everyone into trouble,” Tony said, voice muffled by his hand as he scrubbed at his face.

“At least he knows now,” Steve said.

“Yeah, and now he’s in his room hiding,” Tony scoffed. He sighed and straightened in his seat. “Sorry. It’s not your fault.”

“I’m going to go check on him,” Pepper said, standing to her feet. “Night everyone.”

“Yeah, wait for me,” Tony stood as well.

A chorus of night followed them to the elevator and they slipped inside, the door closing behind them.

“Our floor, FRIDAY,” Tony instructed and the lift started to move. 

“Well that was a disaster,” Pepper sighed, leaning into Tony’s side.

Tony kissed her temple and wrapped an arm around her. “I’d like to kill Clint but I’m sure you’d tell me it’s not good for team morale.”

Pepper let out a small laugh which Tony counted as a win.

“I just want our baby to be safe,” Pepper sighed. “Is that too much to ask?”

“No,” Tony murmured, pulling her closer. “He’s going to be okay. Despite their fuck-up tonight, they all care about Peter. They’d never let anything happen to him.”

The elevator doors opened and Tony and Pepper stepped out. They immediately headed to Peter’s room where the door was closed.

Tony knocked lightly on the door and called Peter’s name. There was no response and Tony tried again.

“FRIDAY?” Tony asked.

“Peter is currently in his room,” The AI responded.

Tony pushed open the door and stepped in, eyes falling to the figure of his son face-planted on the bed. He crossed the room and sat on the edge of the bed and placed a hand on the middle of Peter’s back. He felt a shudder and heard a sniff and his heart dropped.

“Oh kid,” Tony whispered. “It’s going to be okay.”

* * *

Kidnapping Peter Parker was never going to be easy but Agent Harper had expected that. As she come to learn over the week the boy was never left alone, often surrounded by those named as the Avengers. She entertained the idea of snagging the boy when he was patrolling as Spider-Man but nixed the idea on the kids first patrol out and saw that he was being trailed by not only Iron Man but War Machine, Falcon and Black Widow.

The boy’s security was top notch and there would be no breaking into the Tower. The school was one of the easier options but there was the possibility of getting caught and his driver was always waiting for him after school and if the head of security wasn’t available it was either Tony or Pepper Stark. Harper could afford the unpredictability of who would be picking up the boy.

It was obvious that the Starks had figured out that it was her. She was sure that Agent Williams had mentioned it to the billionaire – though the man never showed it he had a soft spot for the Starks and their undying devotion of finding their son. Williamson was also a damn good agent and she had spent a long time doing a good job, but nothing that would outshine the man and draw attention to herself. The good news was that they hadn’t found her yet but it wouldn’t be long until they did and she had no intention of being around when they did.

For all their protection of Peter Stark, they had forgotten that there were other ways to get to the boy other than directly. 

A thud on the stairs had Harper straightening in her seat and clicking the safety of the gun. She kept the gun trained on the bottom of the stairs until a figure appeared at the bottom. He didn’t see her at first, going about his usual morning routine and she cleared her throat, causing the boy to jump around.

“Who the fuck are you?” the boy swore, looking around widely. “How did you get in my house?”

“Eugene Thompson, Flash, I need you to do me a favour,” Harper raised the gun and watched with satisfaction as the boy swallowed loudly and his skin went pale.

“My parents are upstairs,” Flash stammered, hands coming up in a classic surrender position.

“No, they’re not,” Harper grinned sharply. “They’re currently on a business trip and won’t be back until tomorrow. You are home alone.”

“There’s money in a safe upstairs,” Flash blurted out. “I can open it. I’ll give you anything you want. Please don’t shoot me.”

“Sweet of you to offer but I’m not after money,” Harper said.

“Then what do you want?” Flash asked desperately.

“I want you to bring Peter Stark here during your lunch break,” Harper said.

Flash’s eyes darted to her gun. “Why?”

“You’d better get going, Flash. I’d hate for you to be late,” Harper said.

* * *

Peter was in the process of putting his books away, daydreaming about getting food into his stomach which was starting to grumble in protest, when suddenly his locker door was slamming shut and an angry Flash was glaring at him.

“I swear I did my part of the project,” Peter said. He yelped when Flash grabbed his arm and started dragging him away from his locker and down the hall. They gained a few whispers as they passed but they were all gone too fast and suddenly Peter was being pushed out the back doors of the school and towards the football field. 

“What the hell Flash,” Peter growled.

Flash ignored him, keeping a firm grip on his elbow as he marched him across the field.

“Flash?” Peter asked, the anger fading as he saw how ruffled Flash looked. The boy was usually so put together, hair neatly gelled but today it was a mass of frizz and curls and Peter was pretty sure that Flash was wearing a pyjama top. “Are you okay?”

“No, I’m not okay,” Flash spat. “Because some woman was in my house this morning with a gun pointing at me.”

“What?” Peter gasped.

“She told me I had to bring you to my house,” Flash said, coming to a sudden halt near the bleachers. “She said I had to bring you to my house during lunch. She’s been watching me. She knew my parents weren't home. She was _going to shoot me_.”

“Oh god,” Peter swallowed. “Agent Harper.”

“Agent Harper?” Flash repeated, eyes wide and frantic. “That psycho bitch is an agent?”

“She’s trying to kidnap me,” Peter admitted, pulling out his phone. “Wait – are you dragging me to your house right now?”

“No, I’m telling you to run, idiot,” Flash growled. “I know I’m a dick but I’m not stupid enough to go home when there is a crazy person with a gun waiting for us.”

“That is such a shame, Flash.”

Peter and Flash turned as they watched Agent Harper step out from under the bleachers, her gun pointed directly at them.

“I guess I’m not stupid enough to believe that you would do as I say,” Harper said. Then she raised her gun higher and aimed it at Peter.

He heard the near silent whump of the bullet leaving the chamber and something sharp tearing through his shoulder. He cried out, knocked off balance as he hit the ground. His phone flew from his hand, landing on the grass a few feet away. He screamed through clenched teeth, hand coming up to touch his shoulder and could already feel his sticky blood beneath his fingers.

“What the fuck!” Flash screeched.

Peter groaned, struggling to sit up and had just enough time to see Harper standing above him, gun raised before it came crashing down on his temple and the world went blank.

* * *

Flash stared in horror as Peter crumbled on the grass and a red staining spreading slowly over his jacket.

“You shot him,” Flash gasped, unable to take his gaze off the blood.

“Unless you would like to be next, pick him up,” Harper said.

Flash couldn’t tear his gaze of Peter, the boy pale and unmoving. He flinched violently when he felt the cool press of the barrel against the back of his head.

“Hurry now, Flash. I wouldn’t want anyone to see us,” Harper purred.

Flash swallowed thickly, kneeling down and scooping Peter into his arms. The boy was lighter than he expected, his head lolling back as he remained unconscious. Flash stood, legs shaking as he turned to face an expectant looking Harper.

“Good boy. Let’s go,” Harper said and started walking towards the side gate.

Flash cradled Peter to his chest, arms shaking as he followed Harper, casting a pleading look back at the school, hoping that someone just witnessed what had happened.

* * *

“Have you seen Peter?” Ned asked MJ, scanning the cafeteria but could see no sign of his best friend.

“Not since class,” MJ said, eyes never leaving her book.

“He said he would meet me here once he put his books away,” Ned said. “He should be here by now. I could hear his stomach grumbling in class.”

“Maybe he went to the bathroom,” MJ shrugged but she lifted her gaze from her book.

Ned bit his lip. “Maybe.” His gaze landed on Betty who was strolling to their lunch table and he straightened his posture, thoughts of his best friend briefly taking a hiatus.

“Hi Ned, MJ” Betty greeted when she reached them.

“Hey Betty,” Ned grinned stupidly and he mentally scolded himself for not being cooler.

“Ned, I just wanted to tell you that I finished my written part of the report so in class this afternoon we can start working on putting it together,” Betty said.

“Awesome,” Ned gave a thumbs up. “I finished my part too.”

“Great,” Betty smiled easily.

“Have you seen Peter?” MJ asked.

Betty gave MJ a sly smile. “He was being dragged by Flash towards the back exit last I saw him. Flash looked pissed though so I’m not sure what it was all about.”

Ned and MJ looked at one another and both got to their feet.

“Thank Betty,” MJ said, stepping over the seat and started heading towards the doors. 

“Yeah, thanks. I had better go after her,” Ned said, hurrying after MJ.

“See you later,” Betty waved and Ned saw the slight disappointment on her face.

Ned followed her out of the school and out on to the football field which had a few students lingering about but none were Flash and Peter. That didn’t stop Ned from following MJ across the field, worry churning in the bottom of his stomach.

“Hey! Have you seen Peter Stark or Flash?” MJ called to the students on the field but they all shook their heads.

“Maybe they’re working on their project,” Ned suggested weakly as they reached the bleachers.

MJ looked behind them and Ned kicked at the ground, frowning as he saw something dark staining the grass. He paused, swallowing thickly as he crouched down to get a closer look. His body swayed and threw out a hand to steady himself.

“Oh no,” he whispered.

“Ned? You okay?” MJ asked, hand coming to rest on his shoulder.

“That looks a lot like blood,” Ned said weakly.

MJ crouched down beside him and stared at the spot on the grass. 

“Can you track Peter’s phone?” MJ asked.

Ned shakily drew out his phone and entered his passcode. He opened the app he and Peter had installed and clicked at the options until bringing up Peter’s number and letting the app track where the phone was. They watched the screen, barely breathing as the screen loaded. Suddenly the map was shrinking and a little blue dot showed that Peter was on the football field.

Both looked up, searching the ground before they spotted the cracked screen of Peter’s phone glinting in the sun.

MJ quickly rushed to it, picking it up and entering Peter’s passcode. The phone was open to an app that she recognised as a panic button that had been installed on Peter’s phone designed by Mr. Stark himself. She knew because he had also installed it on MJ’s and Ned’s phone to be used in emergencies only.

“Call Mr Stark,” MJ said quietly. “I’ll go tell the principal.”

* * *

“Boss, Peter has activated his panic button.”

The AI’s voice sent a cold chill down everyone's spine and the world seemed to stop for an instant before every Avenger was leaping to their feet.

“Sam, Rhodey, you follow Tony by air,” Steve commanded as Tony started racing towards the lift. “Pepper, Bruce, you set up here and contact Scott, Wanda and Vision. Nat, Clint and I will take the cars.”

“Boss, Ned Leeds is trying to get through to you,” FRIDAY said, as the elevator doors closed on him, Rhodey and Sam.

“Put him through,” Tony demanded, body jerking with tension, willing the elevator to go faster.

“Mr. Stark!” Ned’s panic voice did nothing to calm Tony down.

“Peter activated his panic button,” Tony said, rushing out the door as the elevator doors finally opened. “Tell me it was an accident.”

“Peter never came to lunch,” Ned rambled quickly. “He was supposed to meet me and MJ in the cafeteria but Betty said that Flash took him out to the football field so we went out there to check but neither of them were there and there is blood on the field and Peter’s phone was in the grass close by.”

“Ned,” Tony barked. “Take a breath. What did you say about the blood?”

“There’s blood on the grass,” Ned gasped. “Like, a lot of blood.”

“I’ll be there in ten minutes,” Tony said, stepping out on the platform and the suit wrapping around him as he got closer and closer to the edge. Before the mask had even snapped into place he was leaping off the edge of the building and racing towards Midtown School of Science and Technology and prayed that his son was okay.


	14. Part 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! 
> 
> Thank you so much for all the love and support everyone is giving this story! I am so excited for you guys to read this next chapter!!! I hope you are all ready for a wild ride as this is where we discover who Harper is! Thank you so much for all the support you have given this and I hope you enjoy! 
> 
> Sorry for any mistakes!

Peter came to with a searing, red hot pain in his shoulder and throbbing headache that sent a roll of nausea through his stomach. He was aware that he was in a car, the sound of the rolling wheels vibrating through his body and deduced that he was stuffed into the boot since his body was cramped and it was dark. His head was swimming and each breath seemed to send a wave of dizziness through him.

He wasn’t alone and was surprised to feel a body pressed up against his back, a palm pressed firmly against the wound in his shoulder which was what was causing the pain. There were also two fingers pressed to his neck, right on his pulse that was fluttering in a not-so-good rhythm.

“Flash?” Peter rasped, eyes trying to adjust to the darkness.

“Peter? Oh, thank fuck,” Flash whispered. “That crazy bitch shot you!”

Peter distinctly remembered that and whimpered as another wave of hot, pulsing pain went through his shoulder. “What happened?”

“She made you carry you to the car,” Flash said, his voice low and scared. “She made me put you in and then made me get in the trunk too. I’m sorry, she was going to shoot me too.”

“S’not your fault,” Peter whispered, licking his lips. His tongue felt weird and fuzzy, like he had pins and needles. “We have to get out of here.”

“Did you miss the part where she shot you?” Flash hissed.

“You want to wait for her to do it again?” Peter asked around a moan as he attempted to shift. Bright spots erupted over his vision and he gasped for breath that seemed to be getting harder and harder to take in.

“You have a bullet in your shoulder,” Flash hissed. “What exactly is your plan?”

“The wound is healing,” Peter said. “The bleeding has already stopped.” Though he couldn’t tell if the bullet had gone all the way through or not. He also wasn’t sure which was better as he honestly hadn’t planned on ever getting shot.

“How can you tell?” Flash asked.

Peter felt along his wrist and was relieved that his web shooters were still attached. He was also glad for his mum and dad’s insistence that he wear his Spider-Man suit under his clothes for the past week whenever he left the house in case – well, if this happened. Though he was pretty sure they were not going to like that he got shot. Or kidnapped. Or the whole situation. God he was in so much trouble.

“I know you aren’t going to believe me but I’m Spider-Man,” Peter said quickly. “I have super healing.”

Flash was silent behind him, body tense and his fingers pressed harder against Peter’s pulse point. “You’ve lost too much blood. Your pulse is really weak and you’re speaking crazy. ”

Peter ignored Flash and ignored the yelp and the searing pain that rushed through his shoulder as he wiggled his arm under Flash and gripped him tightly. He heard Flash yelp and try to pull away from where they were now pressed cheek to cheek. Peter hissed as his shoulder was jostled and simply tightened his grip.

“What are you doing?” Flash hissed, still struggling in Peter’s grip. 

“On the count of three, I’m going to kick open the trunk, cast a web and fling us out,” Peter said, bringing up his knees until his feet hovering just underneath the trunk, ignoring that he almost passed out at the action.

“No,” Flash was shaking his head. “No, oh my god you are insane? You’ve lost too much blood. This is not going to work! You aren’t Spider-Man!”

“Yes, I am,” Peter gritted his teeth and took a deep breath. “One three. One. Two. Three.”

* * *

Tony landed on the grass with a heavy thump, kicking up dirt and grass as he did. The face mask flipped open and he took in the pale and shaking form of his son’s best friend.

“Ned, you okay?” Tony asked, putting a metal hand on the boy’s shoulder.

“I –“ Ned started but shook his head, grip tightening on Peter’s cracked phone. He wasn’t looking at Tony, instead looking at the stain on the grass that almost had Tony’s knees buckling at the sight.

Rhodey and Sam landed a few seconds later, Sam wings immediately retracting as he scanned the area.

“Ned, where’s MJ?” Tony asked, keeping his voice steady and calm despite that he wanted to do the exact opposite.

“Went to get the principal,” Ned said. And pointed to the ground where the stain was. “Is that Peter’s?”

“Focus on me, Ned,” Tony said, gently steering Ned’s chin with his gloved hand. “Peter’s going to be fine. You’ve seen his super healing, right. This is nothing.”

Ned nodded, determinedly keeping his eyes on Tony. “Right. Super healing. I forgot.”

“Ned, I need you to remember. Did you see anyone hanging around the school? Or anything weird? Did Peter say he had any strange feelings?” Tony demanded.

“No, nothing,” Ned said. “The only weird thing was Flash who came to school in his pyjama top which is something Flash would never do. He’s always wearing something designer to school. Something about his image?”

Tony glanced at Rhodey.

“Harper may have gotten to the kid to get to Peter,” Rhodey said. “Sam, go check out the kids address, see if there are any clues there.”

Sam’s wings spread wide. “On it.” And then he was launching into the sky.

“Mr Stark,” Principal Morita said, hurrying across the field with MJ right beside him. “MJ has just filled me in that she thinks Peter was taken.”

“He activated his panic button and Ned here has his phone,” Tony growled. “He was taken from here and I want to know how the hell that happened when I updated the school about the threat against my son. How the hell did you let a stranger walk on to this campus?”

“Tones,” Rhodey warned. “That isn’t helping Peter.”

Tony gritted his teeth and took a sharp breath through his nose and turned, ignoring the principal all together. “Right. Ned, you said Peter came out here with Flash?”

“Flash was seen dragging Peter out here,” MJ answered. “Ned and I came out here to look for them but neither of them was here. We found Peter’s phone and that blood stain.”

“You only found one phone?” Rhodey asked.

Ned and MJ nodded.

“FRIDAY, track Flash’s phone,” Tony instructed, his face plate snapping back into place. “Also, bring up the security feed from the external cameras. I want to see how this bitch got in.”

“On it, Boss,” Friday said.

“Tones, Steve is on route with Nat and Clint,” Rhodey’s voice came over the coms. “As soon as we have a location, we’ll send it through to him.”

“Come on FRIDAY, talk to me sweetheart,” Tony urged.

“I’m into the security camera’s Boss,” FRIDAY said, projecting it onto one of Tony’s screens. “I’ve also managed to capture a licence plate and am currently tracking it through the cameras throughout the city.”

“Rhodey, did you get all that?” Tony said and turned to MJ and Ned.

“Got it,” Rhodey nodded and blasted into the air.

“Mr Stark,” MJ said. “Please bring Peter back.”

“I intend to,” Tony nodded at MJ and then he was blasting into the air.

“FRIDAY, switch comms on for the whole team,” Tony instructed.

“Tony,” Pepper’s frantic voice filtered into his ear. “FRIDAY’s tracking Flash’s phone and she’s got a hit.”

“Call it,” Tony demanded.

“I’ve been trying too,” Pepper said. “Nobody’s answering. I’ll keep trying though.”

“Tony looks like she’s heading out of the city,” Natasha said, the roar of the car echoing in the comms. “We’re following her now. E.T.A 10 minutes.”

“Rhodey and I will get there first,” Tony said.

“Tony, cameras showed that Flash was putting Peter in the trunk before getting himself,” Bruce said and there was clear hesitation in his voice. “Doesn’t look like Peter was conscious.”

“Shit,” Tony swore. “I think he’s injured. There was blood at the school.” He pushed his suit to go faster. The city was falling away beneath him as he and Rhodey flew fast and hard. The traffic below them was thinning out and there were only a few cars that were travelling down the open road.

“Tony be careful,” Steve warned. “We still don’t know what Harper’s plan is.”

“She’s got my son,” Tony growled.

“Tony, up ahead,” Rhodey said.

FRIDAY locked on to a black car, the number plate enlarged on his screen. “It’s a match, Boss,” FRIDAY said.

“Got it,” Tony said, heart beating rapidly in his chest.

He and Rhodey fell into line beside one another, flying hard towards the car. Tony lined up a small rocket, launching it in a trail smoke. It soared over the front of the car landing on the road a few meters ahead where it exploded. Tony watched as the black car slammed on the brakes skidding in a trail of smoke that poured from the wheels. It caused a chain effect, every car behind screeching to a halt behind them. 

To his surprise the boot opened quickly, flying off its hinges at the force. A string of web flew out, catching Tony’s suit and he nearly jerked off course at the force. He quickly gained control as Peter came flying out of the trunk, supporting a screaming Flash in his arms.

“Peter! Tree,” Tony shouted.

Peter heard, dropping the Web attached to Tony before shooting one across the road to the closet tree before he was swinging out of the way and onto the side of the road where he disappeared from Tony’s view.

“Tony, she's trying to run,” Rhodey warned.

Gunshots rang out as Harper fired bullets towards them, but it was nothing against his suit. The bounced harmlessly off their suits and in an instant Tony was blasting Harper with a low-level pulse of energy, rage burning in his eyes now that Peter was safely out of the way.

* * *

Harper couldn’t help the scream that tore from her lips as she went flying through the air, before landing hardly on the ground, rolling with the impact. The impact knocked the wind out of her, and she gasped for breath, trying to orientate herself. She could feel that her skin was torn but her grip on her gun hadn’t loosened in the toss. She raised her gun, knuckles bloodied, but it was knocked easily out of her hand and she lifted her head to find the hard glare of Iron Man’s mask.

“One more move and your toast,” Tony Stark’s voice rang out hard and cool, gauntlet’s strained on her face.

Harper chuckled, sinking down on to the ground. She hadn’t expected to get as far as she did but was surprised that she had. It didn’t matter how far she made it though, she still did what she had intended to do.

“Go ahead,” Harper let her head hit the ground, grinning up at the sun. “Your son will die either way.”

The gauntlet glowed threateningly. “What did you say?”

Harper flashed him a feral grin. “You killed mine, I killed yours.”

“Hey! Help! Somebody help!”

“I’ve got her,” Rhodey said, taking over Tony’s position. “Go!”

Harper laughed to herself, a tear running out of the corner of her eye.

* * *

Tony blasted off to the air in the direction of Flash’s frantic calls. He found them on the side of the road, Flash leaning over his son’s unconscious form, bloody hands pressed over his kids shoulder. He landed on the ground hard, bending down to one knee and threatening to vomit up his heart.

Peter looked too pale, skin sweaty and askew, lips turning almost white. His chest wasn’t rising as often as it should and legs were jerking irregularly in not a good way.

“She shot him!” Flash cried, face pale and tears rolling down his cheeks. “He passed out. I can’t wake him up!”

“I got him,” Tony said, pushing Flash out of the way and scooping Peter into his arms. “The Avengers are coming, wait for them. Understood.”

Flash nodded frantically.

“FRIDAY, scan him,” Tony said as he blasted into the sky.

“Bullet wound in the shoulder,” FRIDAY answered promptly. “Sir, it doesn’t appear to be healing like his other wounds.”

“Bruce, you there?” Tony shouted, cradling Peter in his arms tightly as he sped back towards the Tower.

“Here,” Bruce said.

“Call Helen Cho and get her ass to the Tower,” Tony said. “Get the med bay set up pronto as we are coming in hot.”

“Got it,” Bruce said. “FRIDAY is already sending through Peter’s vitals.”

“You’re going to work on him until Cho gets there,” Tony said.

“Got it,” Bruce said.

“Tony,” Pepper’s voice came over his comm wobbly. “She shot him?”

“He’s going to be fine,” Tony assured her, swallowing and hoping that he wasn’t lying. “He’s going to be fine.”

* * *

Rhodey didn’t take his eyes off Harper, nor his charged gauntlet as two cars rolled up to the scene. Clint, Natasha and Steve climbed out of the car and strolled purposefully over to him, faces set in a grim line.

“Flash is over there,” Rhodey pointed in the direction of the trees on the side of the road. “Someone go and check on him.”

“Got it,” Clint said and jogged away.

“Agent Harper,” Steve said, voice cold and gaze hard.

“Captain,” Harper drawled, hand now cuffed behind her back and her face pressed against the road.

“I’m going to ask you one more time,” Rhodey growled. “What did you do to my nephew.”

“I shot him,” Harper shrugged as she sat crossed legged on the ground, skin torn from being thrown.

“What was on the bullet?” Rhodey growled.

Harper smirked and Rhodey brought his other gauntlet, listening to the charger go off. “What did you do to my nephew?”

“Rhodey,” Steve voice commanded. “Stand down.”

Rhodey narrowed his eyes but didn’t lower his hands.

“Don’t worry Rhodey,” Natasha said, stepping forward with a knife in her hand. “I’ll have her singing in no time.”

For the first time Rhodey saw a brief flicker of fear on the woman’s face. Harper’s eyes tracked as Natasha stalked forward like a lion hunting its prey.

“Natasha,” Steve warned, lowly. “We take her back to the tower.”

“Where Peter could die before he gets the care he needs?” Natasha asked, eyes never leaving Harper’s. “You and I both know that if Peter dies, nobody will be finding Harper’s body.”

“I’m not afraid to die,” Harper glared.

“Who said anything about dying?” Natasha cocked her head to the side.

Harper’s glared and said nothing. Rhodey watched her flinch as Natasha ran her knife over Harper’s jaw.

“Go ahead, I’m not talking,” Harper spat.

“I believe you,” Natasha said. “But everyone has a breaking point and I’m eager to find yours.”

Rhodey didn’t blink as the first line of blood appeared on Harper’s jaw and dribbled down her neck.

* * *

Tony landed on the tower’s balcony with a thump, the door immediately being thrown open. His face mask snapped back as he strode a fast as he could towards the door where Bruce was already waiting with a gurney.

“His pulse is really weak,” Tony said, gently laying his son down on the gurney. His heart was racing in his chest as he saw the lifeless movement of his son, face even paler than before. 

Bruce was already moving, wheeling Peter towards the elevator. “Got it. Get out of that suit then meet me in the med bay.”

Tony desperately wanted to follow but he knew that Bruce was right. With a growl of frustration, he stepped back out on the platform and let FRIDAY disengage the suit around him, sending it back to his lab. As soon as he was free, he was sprinting into the Tower and running straight to Med Bay.

Pepper was already there, eyes rimmed red and hiccupping as she tried to suppress her sobs. As soon as she saw Tony, she was racing to him and throwing her arms around his neck and sobbing into his neck.

“I got you,” Tony clutched her tightly, burying a hand in her hair as he cradled him close.

“Our baby,” Pepper sobbed into his neck, clinging to him tightly.

Tony held her shaking boy tightly, feeling his own tears well up in his eyes and slip down his cheeks. He buried his face into Pepper’s hair, needing a moment to collect himself. He could not lose his son. Not now, not after everything he and Pepper had been through.

“He’s going to be okay,” Tony said, pulling back and cupping Pepper’s face in his hands. He kissed the tip of her nose, then her forehead as she tried valiantly to stop crying. “Bruce has got him now. He’s going to be fine.”

He wasn’t sure who he was trying to convince more – himself or Pepper.

“She shot our baby,” Pepper snarled, sniffing loudly. “I’ll kill her.”

“Only if I can help,” Tony said. He pressed another kiss to Pepper’s forehead and hugged her tightly again.

“Boss, Helen Cho is here,” FRIDAY said. “I’ve already given her access and i'm bringing her to the med bay now.”

“Good job, sweetheart,” Tony croaked out. “Let Bruce know.”

The AI didn’t respond and a few minutes later Helen was hurrying out of the elevator, her long dark hair tied back into a tight bun.

“Where is he?” Cho demanded.

“Through there,” Pepper sniffed, pointing to the set of clear doors. Bruce was visible inside, moving around calmly but quickly.

“Both of you stay here,” Cho said, brushing past them and disappearing inside.

Both Pepper and Tony knew better than to get in Cho’s way, but it didn’t stop them from drifting to the glass walls to watch her work on their son.

* * *

Steve clenched his jaw at the scream Harper let out. He had his back turned, unable to watch the spy torture the woman. Instead he kept his eyes on the cars that were starting to pile up. Police and ambulances were already on their way and they needed to move Harper before they arrived.

“I poisoned the bullet,” Harper gasped, and Steve whipped around.

Harper’s face was bloodied, and her front teeth were missing. Her right was swelling, and it looked as if a part of her ear was missing but Steve tried not to look too closely at that. This was Peter’s life at stake. He could not let this boy die – Tony and Pepper would never recover, and it was not something Steve wanted to see. The world needed them. All of them.

“Why?” Natasha demanded, moving to flick Harper’s damaged ear and the woman flinched.

“Revenge,” Harper spat, blood flying from her mouth. She looked deranged with her bloodied teeth, eyes wild and rimmed red. “They killed my father! I’m just finishing his work.”

“Who’s work?” Steve demanded.

“Obadiah Stane,” Harper grinned madly. “I’m his illegitimate daughter. The Starks ruined him. Took everything that was rightly his. So, Obadiah took what mattered most to them.” Her eyes grew hard and she spat a mouthful of blood at their feet. “They killed him and so I killed their son.”

“No, you didn’t,” Rhodey said and pulled back his fist and punched Harper across the temple. She hit the ground hard, knocked out cold. “Bitch touched my nephew.”

“Call Tony,” Steve said. “They need to know about the poison.”

“On it,” Rhodey nodded, face mask snapping back into place.

“Let’s get her in the car,” Steve said, bending down to pick up the unconscious woman. “We need to get out of here and get Flash to a hospital.” 

“I’ll get the car ready,” Natasha said, hand coming up to touch the com in her ear. “Clint, we’re heading out. You take Flash to a hospital; we’ll take Harper to the Compound.”

“Copy that,” Clint said. “I’ll see you there later.”

* * *

Tony’s phone rang, jolting him from his spiralling thoughts as he stared at Bruce and Cho and the unmoving body of his son. Rhodey’s name flashed on the screen and he quickly answered it.

“Platypus,” Tony answered, unable to tear his gaze away from Peter.

“Harper poisoned the bullet,” Rhodey forwent any formalities.

“Fuck,” Tony swore, releasing Pepper to storm into the med bay.

“Tony you can’t be here,” Bruce said, glancing at Cho who was holding a clamp in one hand and was digging around in his son's shoulder with a pair of tweezers, before going to Tony, halting any further movement towards Peter.

“The bullets have been poisoned,” Tony said breathlessly, stomach churning at the sight.

“Explains why he isn’t healing,” Bruce said. “FRIDAY, start scanning Peter’s blood for all poisons.”

“I’ve got the bullet,” Cho said and slowly was twisting her hand until she removed the tweezers and the bullet made a rattling sound as she dropped in into a nearby dish. “Tony you need to leave now.”

Tony slowly backed up as Bruce’s gentle but firm nudge, heart breaking as he re-joined Pepper.

She took the phone from Tony’s limp hands, putting it on speaker.

“Rhodey? Did you get her?” Pepper asked.

“Got her Pep,” Rhodey said. “Steve and Nat are taking her to the compound for more questioning – well, they will when she wakes up.”

Fresh tears welled in Pepper’s eyes, but her voice was steady as she said, “Thank you.”

“Cho got the bullet out,” Tony said. “They’re running tests for the poison.”

“That’s good,” Rhodey said. “I’m on my way.”

“What about the other kid, Flash?” Tony asked.

“Clint’s taking him to the hospital. He’ll stay with him,” Rhodey said. “I’ll be there soon.”

Tony hung up, slipping the phone back into his pocket and wrapped his arms around his wife, hugging her tightly.

“Is Peter going to be okay?” Pepper asked. “What did Cho say?”

“She kicked me out,” Tony admitted. “But she’s the best and Bruce won’t let anything happen to Peter.”

“I should call May,” Pepper sniffed, wiping her eyes. “Let her know what’s happening.”

“You want me to do it?” Tony asked as he saw Pepper looking longingly at the window where they watched as Cho started stitching up Peter’s shoulder.

“I can do it,” Pepper finally said, tearing her gaze away. “I’ll just be down the hall. Don’t let him out of your sight.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Tony promised.

Pepper nodded, took a shaky breath and squeezed Tony’s hand before wandering down the hall to make the difficult call to May.

Tony watched his wife for a moment before he turned back to the glass windows to keep an eye on his son, knowing he would not feel complete until Peter opened his eyes.


	15. Part 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well guys, this is it! This is the final chapter! 
> 
> Thank you so much everyone for all the lovely words of support that you haven given me! I love you all so much and am so glad that you have all enjoyed this story! I had such a fun time writing this :) 
> 
> Apologies for any mistakes and I hope you all enjoy!

“How is he?” Pepper demanded the minute Bruce stepped out into the hallway.

“He’s going to be fine,” Bruce smiled tiredly, adjusting his glasses. “Helen is just finishing up.”

Tony felt his knees buckle and hugged Pepper close to his side. She hugged him around the waist in response, pressing a kiss to his neck as she took a shuddery breath.

“Thank god,” Rhodey and May sighed on Tony’s other side. 

“Can we see him?” Tony asked, not caring if Bruce said no, he wanted to see his son.

Bruce nodded and jerked his head in a motion for them to follow.

As they approached the bed, tired but pleased, Helen smiled at them, finishing entering something on the machines that she had Peter hooked up to. The heart monitor beeped in a steady rhythm that was a lot stronger and regular than it had been a couple of hours ago. Peter was still pale on the bed, but his lips had a little more colour to them. They had removed his clothes and suit, a white bandage now covering the upper part of his shoulder, the rest of him covered in a blanket.

“Oh Peter,” Pepper sighed, voice watering as she gently smoothed back his hair. He didn’t stir or register the touch, still knocked out cold.

“Is he going to be okay?” May asked in a small voice.

She had shown up an hour into Peter’s treatment, eyes rimmed red and her hair pulled into a messy bun. She had been immediately pulled into a hug by Pepper, the two women bursting into tears as Pepper explained again what had gone down.

“Peter’s going to be just fine,” Helen assured them. “You have an incredible son. His healing factor is amazing.”

“It’s sure is something,” Tony managed to get our hoarsely, squeezing his son's foot over the top of the blanket.

“If he didn’t have it, he wouldn’t have made it,” Helen said. “He lost a lot of blood with the initial shot.”

“Because the bullet had been dipped in poison it distracted Peter’s healing factor as he tried to fight off the foreign substance,” Bruce explained. “If Peter hadn't been with Flash and he hadn’t put pressure on the wound, Peter would have bled out before he had a chance to heal himself enough for the bleeding to stop.”

Clint had called from the hospital after he had made Flash give him a rundown of what had happened, and they had passed the information onto Bruce and Cho who adjusted their treatment accordingly.

“We identified the poison and this IV bag here,” Helen pointed to the closest hanging bag. “is the antidote. He needs more than a regular person because his metabolism is fighting it off so quickly.”

“We’ve also got him on Cap’s pain killers,” Bruce added. “So, he should be out for a while.”

“Thank you,” Tony said, voice thick with emotions that Bruce and Cho had never seen before. “For everything.”

“You’ve got an incredible son,” Helen smiled with a nod. “I’ll monitor him for the next few days, but he should be up and swinging again in next to no time.”

“Thank you,” Pepper said earnestly.

“I’ll be around if you need anything,” Helen nodded and moved away to give them space.

Tony, Pepper, May and Rhodey all pulled up a chair as Bruce excused himself to go clean up.

May and Pepper fussed around Peter, making sure his pillow was fluffed and he was tucked neatly into the bed, despite not being awake to appreciate it. 

“Who did this to him?” May finally asked.

Tony had been surprised when May hadn’t initially asked and wondered how she had managed to hold off for so long. 

“Elizbeth Harper,” Tony growled. “Obadiah’s daughter.”

“He had a daughter?” May asked, looking between Rhodey and Tony. “I thought he wasn’t married.”

“He wasn’t,” Tony shook his head. “He was not the paternal type either, no matter what the media said about his and mine relationship. He never said anything about having a daughter and my guess is that he wanted to keep it that way.”

“So what?” May huffed. “She is just following in her father’s footsteps?”

“Basically,” Rhodey crossed his arms over his chest. “She wanted revenge for what happened to him. An eye for an eye.”

“Both deserved exactly what they got,” Tony muttered darkly.

“She won’t ever be getting near our nephew again,” Rhodey said to May.

“Good,” May nodded firmly, her eyes darkening at the thought.

They made themselves comfortable around Peter’s bed, Tony wrapping an arm around Pepper and pulled her against his chest. She sunk into him and Tony drew comfort in her steady heat and the way she played with his fingers.

“You did it,” Pepper murmured, tilting her head up to look at Tony. “You brought him home again.”

Tony kissed her deeply, toying with the ends of her hair. When he pulled away, she was smiling at him beautifully.

“We did it,” Tony murmured back.

An hour later they were all jolting in their chairs as Peter stirred, lips smacking together as he sluggishly opened his eyes.

“Kid?” Tony asked, perching on the side of the bed.

Peter rolled his head towards his voice and blinked sluggishly at him. His eyes were glassy as he blinked slowly at them. He stared at them for a beat, before his eyes were widening.

“S’ issster stark?” Peter slurred.

Tony’s heart clenched at the title, but his son was awake, so he planted a smile on his face. “Hey kid. You with us?”

Peter blinked. “What are you doin’ here?”

“Sweetheart? Do you know where you are?” Pepper asked, taking his hand in hers, careful of the IV in his hand.

“S Pepper Stark!” Peter gaped at his mother. “’ wha’ are you doin’ here?”

“We’re here for you, sweetie,” Pepper smiled, gently smoothing back a stray curl. “How are you feeling?”

“S’okay,” Peter hummed, eyes fluttering briefly shut before they opened again. “Floaty.”

“That would be the painkillers,” May chuckled from the other side of the bed.

Peter rolled his head and stared at his Aunt for a moment before his eyes were widening once again. “Aunt May!”

“Hey,” May smiled.

“S’SSSSStarks are here!” Peter grinned loopily. “Did you see?”

“Yeah, I can see that,” May grinned at Tony and Pepper who were looking at Peter fondly. 

“May,” Peter said, his voice growing serious. “May, you can’t give them the date loaf. S’not good.”

Tony snorted, hiding his laughter into his hand. He coughed as Pepper elbowed him in the stomach and fought to keep his face straight. He didn’t dare look at Rhodey, but he could tell his best friend that he was trying to keep a straight face himself.

“I won’t,” May promised, her amusement a nice replacement from the worry she had been sporting.

“Why are they here?” Peter asked and then he whispered. “Did Mr sark find out I took apart one of his phones? M’ I in trouble?”

“No baby,” May giggled. “You got hurt, do you remember?”

“I got hurt?” Peter's eyes widened.

Tony was kind of glad his son was high as a kite right now because he knew later he wouldn’t be having nearly as much fun later when the drugs started to wear off.

“Yeah you did,” Tony said, drawing Peter’s attention back to him. “You scared the hell out of me and your mother. Not cool.”

Peter’s brows furrowed in adorable confusion.

“My mum?” Peter slurred.

“That’s right,” Pepper smiled. “But you’re going to be okay, honey.”

Peter blinked at her and then looked down at their linked hands. “S’ holding my hand.”

“I am,” Pepper said. “Does it hurt?” She went to remove her hand, but Peter squeezed them loosely and she paused.

“Noooo, S’feels nice,” Peter cried quietly. He looked back at Peter, blinking slowly. “YOU’RE MY MUM?”

Everyone jumped at the sudden yelling and Rhodey snorted into his fist.

“Yes,” Pepper grinned, eyes shining brightly.

“‘at’s so cool,” Peter breathed. “Does Mr Stark know?”

Tony snorted again. “Yeah, kid I know. I was there and had something to do with it.”

“You did?” Peter gasped. “What did you do?”

“Did you give him the birds and the bees talk?” Tony asked May, eyebrows raised.

“Peter, honey, Tony’s your dad,” May chuckled.

Peter’s mouth dropped open as he dragged his gaze to Tony. “You’re my dad?”

“Sure am, kiddo,” Tony smiled, heart melting at the adorableness that was his kid. It immediately turned to panic though when fat tears started rolling down Peter’s cheeks and he started crying softly. “Pete? What is it? Are you in pain?”

“S got a family,” Peter sobbed.

“Oh Pete,” Tony said, feeling as if a horse had kicked him in the chest. “Yeah, buddy. You have a family.”

Pepper leaned forward and kissed Peter’s forehead. “Shhh, it’s okay sweetie.”

Peter sniffed, head rolling to the side and he was passed out again, his breathing evening out once again.

“This kid,” May shook her head, wiping the stray tear that rolled down her cheek.

* * *

Peter scrunched his nose as something tugged in his hand and struggled to pry his eyes open. They were so heavy with tiredness that he simply wanted to fade away but the sharp uncomfortable tug on his skin had him blinking slowly. His eyes locked onto a woman he had never met who was gently fiddling with an IV line that was connected to his hand.

Drugs. That is why his body was so heavy. This woman was drugging him. She must work with Harper!

Peter forced his body though the sweet fog and bolted up, grabbing the woman by the wrist, pausing any further movement. She screamed in shock, but Peter ignored her, forcing her back with a shove. He grabbed the IV, yanking it out of his skin with a hiss and jumped to his feet. He swayed as he stood, body tilting to the left as he struggled to gain his balance.

“Peter!” the woman gasped, reaching out to steady him but he stumbled out of the way and fell down hard. His shoulder jolted and his hissed as pain radiated through it.

“Peter.”

Peter jolted at the familiar voice, more pain shooting through his shoulder and turned to see Bruce crouching down beside him.

“Doctor Banner?” Peter frowned, his heart beating rapidly in his chest and a wave of confusion swept over him.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Bruce helped him sit up. “Easy, easy, you’re okay.”

“Peter!”

Peter turned to see Tony running over to him, falling to his knees as his hands came to steady Peter. “Bruce, why the hell is he on the floor?”

“I startled him,” the mystery woman spoke. “I wasn’t expecting him to wake up again so soon.”

“She was drugging me,” Peter said, scrambling back into Tony’s chest. “She works for Harper!”

“Whoa, easy kid, easy” Tony soothed, hands supporting his back. “No, this is Helen Cho, she works with us.”

Peter stopped backing into Tony’s chest, slumping and panting hard. “What?”

“Hi Peter,” Helen smiled, not looking the least bit offended that he had just accused her of drugging him. “I’m so sorry I startled you. I’m Helen. I’m a doctor.”

“She’s one of the best. She helped heal you,” Tony said, his voice a soothing rumble that vibrated against Peter’s back.

“She’s… she’s not with Harper?” Peter asked.

“No, kiddo. She is one of the good guys,” Tony promised.

The fight left Peter’s body and exhaustion took over and he sunk into Tony’s embrace.

“Alright, let’s get you up,” Tony grunted.

With the help of Bruce, they got Peter back onto his feet and back into the bed. Peter slumped against the pillow, leaning into the hand that smoothed back his hair. His eyes drooped but he forced himself to keep awake, confusion still clouding his mind.

“M’ sorry,” Peter said.

“Hey, no apologies,” Tony said, dropping a kiss to the top of Peter’s head. “You were scared and just followed your instincts.”

Peter nodded but guilt was starting to churn through his stomach. “Sorry Doctor Cho.”

Helen smiled over her shoulder at him over her shoulder as she fiddled with the IV line. “Not the first time that’s happened. You were a lot gentler than the Captain the first time he came out of surgery.”

Tony and Bruce both winced.

“That was a nightmare,” Tony mumbled.

Peter was intrigued by what the Captain had done but the pain in his shoulder had him asking “What happened?” instead.

“What do you remember?” Tony asked gently.

Peter brows furrowed as she struggled to place the events. “I was at school. Flash was there. We – we went out onto the football field.” Peter brought his hand up to touch his bandage, but Tony’s callused hands stopped him from touching it. “She shot me!”

“Yeah, she did,” Tony growled. “The bullet was laced with poison.”

“Oh,” Peter blinked. That explained why he hadn’t been feel all that great and why everything was so hazy. “Wait, is Flash okay?”

“He’s fine,” Tony assured him. “Clint took him to the hospital. He’s got a couple of bruises from where you landed. You passed out before hitting the ground, but he’ll be fine.”

“Ummm,” Peter looked at Tony sheepishly. “I had to tell him I was Spider-Man.”

“I know,” Tony said. “Don’t worry, he won’t be telling anyone and your mum will get him to sign a NDA.”

“Where is mum?” Peter asked. “And Aunt May! Are they okay? Did Harper do something to them?”

“Whoa, easy,” Tony soothed. “They’re both okay. You’re the only one who got hurt. Everyone’s fine.”

“What happened to her?” Peter asked. “Harper, I mean.”

“She’s locked up,” Tony said firmly. “You don’t ever have to worry about her again.”

“Why did she do it?” Peter asked. “What did I do that was so bad?”

Tony sunk down on the edge of the bed, cupping Peter’s neck with one hand and holding Peter’s hand in the other. He looked at his son firmly and said, “ _You_ didn’t do anything. None of this is on you.”

“Why did she take me?” Peter asked desperately.

“This all stems from when you were first taken from us,” Tony explained. “She was Obadiah’s daughter, which was a huge surprise let me tell you. It’s how Obadiah was able to take you and make you disappear. Everything was under her name. Since I hurt her father, she wanted to hurt me.”

“S’not your fault,” Peter said, wincing as he leaned forward and pressed his forehead against Tony’s. “It’s not.”

Tony sighed but pressed back, quickly darting forward to place a kiss on the tip of Peter’s nose. He chuckled when Peter went crossed eyed at the action and gently lowered Peter back against the pillow, heart tugging at the slight hiss Peter gave.

“Hey Cho, how we going on those pain killers?” Tony asked.

“I’ve got a new line set up,” Helen said, appearing at the other side of the bed. “I have to re-insert the needle so Peter, this might sting a little.”

Peter winced as the needle was inserted and re-taped onto his hand, but the drug’s effects happened quickly, and he slumped further down onto the pillows. “Whoa.”

Tony and Bruce both chuckled.

“You’ll feel a little weird but that's totally normal,” Bruce said.

“Don’t go,” Peter started to slur, reaching out and used his sticky powers to keep Tony in place.

Tony made himself more comfortable on the edge of the bed, gently bringing the blankets up further. “I won’t go. I’ll be here with you when you wake up.”

“Mum too,” Peter said, eyes drifting shut. “Don’t forget mum.”

“She’ll be here too,” Tony promised.

Peter nodded and let himself fall back into the sweet nothingness.

* * *

“You two are so embarrassing,” Peter moaned, cheeks flushed pink but there was an excited glint in his eyes that told Pepper he was thoroughly enjoying himself.

“Us? Embarrassing parents,” Tony scoffed dramatically. “Did you hear that, Pep?”

“Sure did,” Pepper smirked, reaching out the wipe at Peter’s cheek at the imaginary dirt on his face. “He couldn’t be possibly talking about us though.”

Peter squawked, slapping her hand away gently. “Mum!”

Peter had been able to leave the med bay within 24 hours of him being shot. He stayed home from school for one day before he insisted that he go back and not let Harper keep him metaphorically locked up.

Pepper and Tony had supported his very mature decision but were still hesitant to let him out of their sight and so they insisted on dropping him off to school themselves and walking him into the school.

“Hey Mr and Mrs. Stark!”

The family turned to see Ned hurrying to them, beaming widely at his best friend. As soon as Ned reached them, he and Peter did their complicated handshake before they were hugging each other tightly.

“Dude, you’re okay!”

“Yep,” Peter beamed.

“Dude, what was it like getting shot?” Ned asked, wide eyed.

“10 out of 10 don’t recommend, Ned. It hurt. A lot,” Peter said straight-faced.

“No shit,” Tony scoffed.

Pepper elbowed him in the gut. “Don’t swear. Hi Ned, how are you going?”

“I’m good,” Ned beamed. “Happy Peter is okay.”

Peter nudged Ned, giving him another wide grin. “Dude, you were a total hero.”

“I was, wasn’t I,” Ned nodded. “Hey, I didn’t even need a hat!”

Pepper shared an amused grin with Tony before shaking her head. “Alright, sweetheart. Have you got everything you need?”

“Yes mum,” Peter moaned, gripping the straps of his backpack.

“Now, if you need anything, just call okay,” Tony said seriously.

“Yes, we’ve been over this,” Peter said, pleading with his eyes for them to let him go. “Ned and I are going to be late to class.” He started backing away, pulling Ned with him.

“What? No kiss for your old man?” Tony teased.

Peter rolled his eyes but darted forward quickly to pull them both into a tight hug. “Love you, bye.” And then he was pulling back and racing into the school with Ned by his side.

“Do you think showing up here at the end of the day with a giant collection of balloons would embarrass him?” Tony asked as he watched Peter disappear into the school.

“I think a giant teddy bear would be more embarrassing,” Pepper suggested, a tiny smirk on her face.

Tony turned to her, a handsome smirk on his lips and his eyes glinting behind his sunglasses. “God I love you.”

“I know,” Pepper shrugged demurely. “I love you too.”

Tony took her hand and they started walking back to the car, ignoring the stare from the students and the other parents that were milling about the front of the school. She gave her husband a wink as he opened the car door for her, and she slid into the passenger seat. A moment later Tony was behind the wheel and pulling into traffic.

“One day I’ll get Nat to pick up Peter,” Tony grinned. “The kid will die.”

Pepper laughed and placed a hand on Tony’s knee, smirking as his leg tensed and his fingers gripped the steering wheel tighter. “This is a good look on you.”

“What? Being conniving?” Tony asked.

“Being a dad,” Pepper smiled softly.

“Well,” Tony shifted in his seat. “You heard Peter, he's got a family. He’s got us and with family comes embarrassing parents which apparently we are.” He cleared his throat, keeping his gaze firmly on the road. “This is good.”

“Yes, it is,” Pepper agreed. “I love you.”

Tony glanced at her, expression softening. “Love you too.”

* * *

“Hey Losers,” MJ nodded at them, joining them at Peter’s locker.

“Hey MJ,” Peter grinned.

“You look happy for someone who got shot not too long ago,” MJ remarked.

Peter shrugged, no longer feeling any pain from the bullet wound. It had healed up nicely, not even leaving a scar much to his disappointment. “I feel good.”

“Hey, what happened to the lady?” Ned asked, keeping his voice low. “Is she in jail now?”

Peter nodded. “Yeah but like, not regular prison. Actually, they wouldn’t tell me where they sent her but apparently, she’s never getting out again.”

“I’m glad you’re okay,” MJ said, punching Peter in the arm. “Don’t scare us again.”

Peter rubbed his arm, a light flush coming across his cheeks. “I won’t.”

“Good,” MJ nodded.

“Are you two having a moment right now?” Ned asked, smirking. “I can go…”

MJ rolled her eyes and Peter groaned. “Ned!”

“Stark!”

Peter turned at his name and saw Flash walking over to him. He looked much better than the last time Peter had seen him; clothes pristine, hair gelled down.

“Flash,” Peter greeted. “Ummm, how are you?”

Flash shrugged. “I’m okay.” He looked at Peter’s shoulder and blinked. “Are you?”

“I’m fine,” Peter nodded. “Umm, thank you. For helping me. You, uh, saved my life.”

Flash blinked and nodded, finally tearing his gaze away from Peter’s shoulder. “Glad you didn’t die.”

“Is this happening right now?” Ned whispered.

“We need to work on our project during lunch,” Flash said. “Since we missed a couple of classes.”

Peter nodded. “Sure.”

“Meet me in the library after you’ve eaten,” Flash said. With one last look at Peter’s shoulder, Flash turned and walked away.

The three of them stared at his retreating form until his disappeared into the crowd.

“This has been a very surreal year for me,” Peter said. “And we aren’t even halfway through it yet.”

“I’m mean, it can’t get any worse,” Ned said.

“No,” Peter agreed, a smile coming to his face at the thought of what he had gained.

Yes, it had been difficult to start off with, but he had a family now. Parents who wanted to embarrass him at the front of the school, and Aunt who loved and supported him, a kick-ass uncle who would totally help him prank his dad, and a group of superheroes’ who would do anything for him.

He was Peter Stark now and he wouldn’t trade that for anything.

**THE END**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's it! Thanks again for all your support!

**Author's Note:**

> Happy reading :D

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [The Kidnapped Spider](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24886705) by [RavenLost2187](https://archiveofourown.org/users/RavenLost2187/pseuds/RavenLost2187)
  * [Bring him Home](https://archiveofourown.org/works/28634097) by [SilverDraconyx](https://archiveofourown.org/users/SilverDraconyx/pseuds/SilverDraconyx)




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